Dunder Blust vs. Razor

[Dunder]

Back to the stale aired bowels of the arena. Where patches of dirt stained red by blood littered the ground, and where the occasional thunderous cheer of the audience pierced the tunnel walls. The only thing more thirsty for blood than the audience was the dirt. At least the crowd left and came back as they pleased. The land itself reeked of blood, soaking every last drop and never tiring.

For this pegasus, though, the atmosphere was feeling more and more like home. Another cog in the endless battle.

Now, the pegasus wasn't even nervous. Only eager for more. That's why he donned his armor mask of a calaca, covered by his wide brimmed hat with a red feather. He felt different while at the arena, ready for anything.

Finally the door leading up the the arena's circle opened up. The wood creaking under the will of the metal gears.

The same as always, the dim sunlight spilled into the chamber. Off of Dunder's own sun of gold bolted to his buckler, the sunlight still glimmered beautifully.

Up the ramp he went. Trotting casually. There was no rush, other than his heart racing in anticipation of his opponent. Maybe the arena gamemasters would decide to put him up against two diamond dogs this time.

Or maybe a dragon. Or maybe a chimera.

He emerged from his side of the arena on all fours. His steel chestplate rustling softly over his pink shirt. His buckler, rapier, parrying dagger, and obsidian knife hanging off his belt.

He stood a few pony-lengths into the arena. Waiting for his opponent to emerge.

"

[ShadowWalking18]

Razor rubbed at his shoulder as he walked into the arena. His body still felt a little sore, despite the magic of his medical treatments to get him back into fighting order quick. He was rather surprised that he was going into another battle, but his surprising victory from before had given him a sense of invincibility.

 

That and...well he found that he was enjoying in these battles. It was primal and ancient in his bones and blood. To fight. he was a warrior at his core.

 

In this fight he kept his sabre once more, but now wore a clan signature weapon on his talons.

 

Ironclaws. Named for his clan, these weapons were like a pair of false talons one wore over their real ones. They were steel talons that fit tightly to ones talons and acted as both armor and weapon for talons, giving them a strong cutting strength, and with the padded part on the palm of his talon, he could safely grab a blade without risk of injury.

 

Other then that, he didn't wear any armor. He preferred to use his speed to avoid injury. After all, the point in a fight was to both hit your opponent while avoiding getting hit yourself.

 

Stepping out into the arena, Razor scanned for his enemy and spotted him.

 

It was a Pegasus. Another flier.

 

"Dang it." Razor grumbled. There went an advantage. It had kinda hoped his next opponent wouldn't be able to fly. It would have been more humorous for him.

 

'Looks like I gotta earn this victory.' He thought.

[Dunder]

Dunder flared his wings in an instinctual display of ferocity when he spotted his opponent. An opponent who appeared to be a griffon on the shorter side. And his silhouette was defined, was he not wearing any armor? Dunder was sure to make him regret that choice.

Now there was no time to waste. The pony got on his hindlegs and reached down to grab his sunlight buckler and cup-hilt rapier off his belt. In their hooves, he gripped both tightly as he squared himself off with his opponent. "¡Ven!" Dunder cried out across the arena before leaping into the air, flapping his wings to take off. The pegasus gave almost no time for the opponent to react. He dove down, impacting the ground right in front of the griffon, but still out of reach of either's sword.

Just as soon as he landed, Dunder aimed his sword point and buckler out at the griffon as the dust settled. That's when he saw who he was going up against. Razor! An old friend and comrade. Now Dunder wouldn't want to play as rough.

But instead of just hanging there awkwardly, ready to strike, he finally did. Dunder led by lunging forward, aiming a stab right for Razor's unarmored chest. Which Razor parried an side stepped away from, countering with his own strike for Dunder's head which was also parried by the buckler, allowing Dunder time to get away from the fight. The flow of the saber versus the speed and accuracy of the rapier.

[ShadowWalking18]

Razor placed a wing in front of his face to stop a plume of sand and dirt rising from the pegasus' impact. He tensed up expecting an attack as he brought up his sabre to the defense. He waited, but no attack came as he flapped his wing down to blow some dust away and he glared at his opponent.

 

He then blinked as he stood before his comrade and friend. Dunder.

 

"Dunder?" He said confused. He hadn't expected this.

 

Of course his surprise was lost as he saw Dunder lunge at him with his rapier, going straight for his chest. Razor though didn't worry as he quickly sidestepped and turned to go with an overhead strike with his sabre, only for his strike to be parried by the buckler. He growled and gave chase to Dunder as the whisked away.

 

Razor went at his friend with the skill of a trained warrior. Even if they were friends, Razor wasn't going to go easy and he hoped Dunder didn't either. He slashed at the Pegasus with his sabre, his talons spinning to allow the blade to snick and snap here and there. He didn't allow himself to stay still as he fought, dodging a thrust from Dunder, working to use the rapiers disadvantage at slashing and slicing ability to his advantage.

 

He went for a strike with his sabre, but feinted, pulling the blow back half way and redirecting it to score a cut across Dunders shoulder. He then leaped away and landed a few feet from Dunder and flicked his blade down as he smirked.

 

"Don't make this easy now. Lets give the crowd our best." he said, partly taunting and partly playful joking as he smirked with a wink.

[Dunder]

Dunder's eyes widened as he was cut across the shoulder. He could feel his coat below the wound getting soaked already, but Dunder the cut wasn't just a slap to the face. The freshly pouring blood reminded Dunder he was in a fight. The bloodlust deep inside wanting to come out to destroy Razor... but the bird was still a friend. Dunder's hoof swiped across his parrying dagger. The opponent was unarmored, but Dunder would make him pay.

After Dunder got cut he slammed his rapier in the scabbard, reaching to cover his wound with his now free hoof. The pony staggered back and fell to his rump, hissing and groaning in pain. His head was down just enough to keep his eye on the enemy. Appear weak when you are strong... Dunder reminded himself. The griffon scooted forward, quickly trying to end it with a hit to the head, but would only find an ambush.

The griffon cut down at Dunder, but Dunder thrusted his dagger at the griffon. The air snapped, and light burst from the golden sun, a powerful shockwave erupted and stopped the griffon in his tracks. The shockwave enough to stop the blow and rattle the griffon's skull. In the instant the griffon was stunned, Dunder leaped forward, closing distance and neutralizing the threat of the sabre by grabbing the sabre wielding foreleg in Dunder's own, Dunder using his greater strength to trap the sword easily. In the same instant, Dunder drew his dagger with his blood stained hoof and plunged it into Razor's stomach, puncturing the intestines. Not immediately lethal, but painful nonetheless.

Razor was no pushover though. He still mustered the strength to retaliate. An iron clawed stab to the pony's chest and swipe to the face. Both protected Dunder from any harm, but the pony was still stunned by the swipe, giving Razor enough time to go for the stallion's unprotected right leg. The gashes were deep, but only reached muscle. The stallion responded by twisting the dagger, opening the wound even more and shoving the griffon, letting go of his sabre foreleg.

Dunder's leg was almost solid red and was burning with pain, but he didn't even look down at it. In the time, he pushed his dagger back in its scabbard and drew his rapier, pointing the blade and buckler at Razor.

[ShadowWalking18]

Razor gasped, and as he was shoved away, he instinctively covered the wound in his stomach with a talon. He bent over and coughed, hacking up some blood. His body was filled with intense pain, only now growing numb as battle adrenaline pumped in his body.

 

'No armor....not a smart move.' He thought.

 

Dunder was definitely serious in this fight, and Razor had to clench his beak tight as he sheathed his sabre across his back. Which would mean that Razor would need to put himself into a fit if he wanted to win. Taking in a deep breath, Razor steeled himself and locked dead on at Dunder.

 

The buckler would be a bother to get around, and he would need to avoid the lunge of the rapier. With a flap of his wings, Razor propelled himself directly at Dunder. His talon scooped up some sand and held it tight as he kept up his charge.

 

Diving head long into an enemy might not seem wise, but Razor wasn't always known for his wisdom; but had a method to his madness. As he closed the gap, Dunder went into a lunge, and Razor twisted to avoid getting stabbed, but Dunder's speed was enough to drive the blade through his wing, even as Razor plowed into the shield at full force.

 

He roared in pain, even as the laws of physics came into play. His speed crashing into Dunders still mass. He thought he felt his shoulder crack slightly as he sent them both to the ground. Razor ignored the pain and forced the buckler down and  he grabbed Dunder by the neck with his one talon, and his other slamming into his eyes and spreading out to force the sand in. He twisted the talon, grinding the grainy substance into the sight giving orbs.

 

As they hit the ground, Razor rolled off and turned, tearing his wing free from the rapier, and drawing his sabre once more. He saw Dunder only briefly staggering about blinded by the sand he so viciously forced into his orbs. He then lunged and brought his sabre down with both talons onto Dunder's wing, cutting deep into the vulnerable limb. Razor didn't feel too bad as he knew from personal experience the medics here would have Dunder back in shape in no time.

 

"I'm taking a trophy!" He growled and grabbed Dunder's tail and kicked him forward as he brought his sabre across the tail, cutting off a good piece of its hair.

[Dunder]

Dunder was squared off with Razor as razor charged. But the reckless charge by the small griffon was crazy enough to catch Dunder off guard, off guard enough so that when their masses met, Razor was able to knock Dunder off his hooves. Dunder hit the ground with a heavy "Oof!" The air and sense was knocked out of him from the sheer surprise and surprising force that Razor built up, so that when it came time for the stallion to defend himself, was wasn't ready. Though in the back of his mind, he took note of the crunch he heard when Razor met Dunder's shield.

Before Dunder knew it, Razor was on top of him. Grabbing the stallion about the neck and pushing his griffon talons against Dunder's mask. the mask itself, attached to an integrated helmet in Dunder's hat, was enough to prevent anything of Razor's from touching his actual eyes. But in Dunder's confusion, his eyes were open, and the dirt was caught on the surface of Dunder's left eye, the eye hole that razor went after. On top of that, Dunder gasped and sucked in some of the particles, causing him to gag and cough while struggling against the griffon.

Just as soon as it started, Razor rolled off. But Dunder, still in his stupor, scrambled to his hooves, coughing and gagging, both eyes closed and one stinging. Without warning, Dunder's wing was hit with enough force to bring his chest close to the ground. He lost feeling in his wing, and couldn't help but to groan loudly. He knew it would hurt later. He took another gasp, this time his lungs clearing up from the dust.

Dunder heard Razor's claim to a trophy, and felt his tail getting clenched in the talons of his opponent. That sentence rang too true to Dunder. Razor was going to make Dunder a trophy at this point. The pegasus gritted his teeth and used the griffon's grip and positioning to his advantage. Dunder reared his powerful hindlegs up, and as Razor cut off a part of Dunder's tail. The pegasus pushed himself back with his forelegs to get closer, and his hindlegs used all their muscles to spring out and smash their hooves against Razor's face with a force sufficient enough to break part of Razor's top beak off, as well as fracture his jaw in two places.

Dunder pulled his hindlegs back to the ground and pulled himself back up to all fours. He looked with his right eye, back at Razor's small body flop back after getting bucked in the face. Dunder turned around, his hoof was still gripping the buckler. Dunder got back up on his hindlegs and faced Razor, who was awakening from his own dazed state. Dunder started to shamble, taking random steps, pretending to still be in his state of confusion, pretending to struggle to take off his mask. Razor got his bearing back, and wasted no time to get back up and charge. Dunder looked unarmed and harmless.

 

So when Razor got back up and charged at Dunder, the griffon didn't know that Dunder was watching the griffon through his one good eye. When Razor closed the distance and cut down at Dunder, the pegasus snapped his shield out to parry the blow. But for his plan to work, he also swung out with his left foreleg, striking a heavy blow to Razor's unarmored shoulder that he charged with, the same one that cracked. And just as Dunder thought, the bone could be heard creaking further.

Razor didn't take the punch well, which only made it easier for Dunder to grab Razor around the chest. The stallion used his greater strength to pick the griffon up like a ragdoll and slam his body against the ground at Dunder's hooves, face down.

Dunder would have pressed the attack, but Razor's sabre was making that option too dangerous. So Dunder backed off, waiting for the moment to put the nail in Razor's coffin. And just as expected, Razor pushed up with his forelegs to try to get up again. But this time, Dunder punched his buckler out, and again the sun on it grew white and cracked out another shockwave. The energy this time rippled through the already fractured shoulder of the griffon. Making the bone snap completely under Razor's weight.

The griffon's body fell back to the floor, unable to push itself up with the intense pain and loss of one leg. Calmly Dunder trotted over to Razor's sword weilding side and put his hoof on the blade and savagely kicked the healthy leg, hyper extending the joint and causing the griffon's talons to fly off the sword and his chest to fall on the ground.

After Razor was disarmed, the pegasus got down on his level, arm-baring the griffon to get him on his back and Dunder on top, razor's fractured shoulder extending to an unnatural angle under his body. Dunder held Razor's other leg down and moved to sit on top of the griffon, pinning the griffon with all his weight.

With that, Dunder drew his obsidian knife, the grip bound in red cord. "Here, take another trophy." With that, Dunder reached a hoof out to hold Razor's head against the ground and in place. With his free hoof, Dunder reeled back, aiming a strike to end it all. The black blade glistened in the sun, and could easily slice flesh, as it had done before. When Dunder struck down, though, Razor wouldn't feel the blade enter him. Instead the tip of the blade pierced the ground next to Razor's neck, only cutting the meaty side of Razor's neck, only a flesh wound.

"Take it. Mind you, the blade is brittle."
 

Dunder smiled down at Razor, though Razor wouldn't see through the mask. The pegasus patted the griffon on the chest a couple times.

Dunder sat up, and took a survey of the crowd. He knew the unfortunate truth, that they wanted to see more blood. They wanted to see Razor's coat matted with red. He took a deep breath, unable to look back down at Razor. "Sorry." Dunder choked on the word. Before Dunder could change his mind, the pegasus grabbed the griffon by the head feathers to bring his head up, so that Dunder could swing his hoof out and smash it against Razor's temple, knocking the griffon out.

The crowd clamored, booing and throwing insults and demanding more. But Dunder didn't care.