The Heavens Shall Fall

The moment the first drop of blood fell from Bren’s arm and struck the fractured stone beneath his feet, everyone held their breath, because it was not something they expected to see. For the first time since the duel began, and probably for the past three to four years, something had finally pierced through the image that Bren had built around himself. The aura that he wanted to project, to seem like an unyielding, untouchable pillar amongst the Outer Disciples, had suddenly had cracks running through it. It had begun when Siu had joined the Hollow Song... Even Bren could see things were going awry, first with Siu refusing their invitation and… well, everything else leading up to this point.

“He’s bleeding…?”

By the time someone had asked it out loud, the duel had already progressed through multiple exchanges. Bren didn’t look at the wound immediately, not that he had to, because he felt it well, and knew that it wasn’t serious… but could turn into one. Ignoring the sharp, burning line that ran across his arm where Siu’s fingers had struck him, he could feel how that one, tiny crack in his defenses had made the punches that he now threw out carry less of his initial momentum. When he flexed his hand, the muscles responded as he was used to them, but… not as perfectly. There was a minute delay that would keep growing and growing the longer they fought.

“Bastard,” he muttered under his breath, watching Siu dodge, doing it even more easily now, aiming a counter at his wound once again, “Tch…!” Bren turned at the right time while clicking his tongue, showing a different part of his body, taking his attack with it, not wanting to worsen his injury.

With no other choice, he rolled his shoulder into the hit, then clenched his injured arm into a fist as the motion sent a dull pulse through his arm, forcing it through, calling on his strength, attacking, but again… it was a miss. Every hit was a damned miss! If not for Siu dodging, those bastardly animals would have become the problem... It was a mess. Every time one of his would have hit him, one of the creatures interfered, just enough to alter the trajectory of his attacks. They were driving him mad!

No matter what he had tried to do, it was clear that Siu wasn’t going to give him any moment of respite. Even if he tried to get away from the beast-loving-bastard, Siu strode after him again. Bren watched as Siu's body lowered its center of gravity, apparently going for a strike that would aim to immobilize him, going for his hips. Wanting to avoid that, Bren stepped forward too, to meet him head-on, wanting to force him to be more direct as they exchanged blows again. This time, expecting to miss him, Bren didn’t try to aim his attack at all. The moment Siu dodged, his breathing shifting, signaling his intent to attack, Bren forcefully kept moving in, intending to headbutt him. Gasps rippled through the crowd as Siu’s body moved onward instead of away when he noticed what Bren was trying to do, and rather than another dodge, he aimed a claw-like strike towards Bren’s throat.

“Ruthless.” Seloryn muttered as she watched him do it, “Forcing this Bren guy to dodge or risk a serious injury… Mhm.”

“He doesn’t fight clean, that’s for sure,” Dui added, but Seloryn just smiled, as there was no clean way to fight, not if you wanted to win.

“…!” Bren was cursing in his head constantly, having to once again abort his plan. Even if he landed his attack, it may not disable Siu… but his claw-like hands could incapacitate him. No matter his defenses, his throat was still... a dangerous target. He watched as Siu’s hands moved in a tight, controlled arc, and Bren could feel the intent to rip his throat open… he would do it, and that made him shiver for a moment. “You—!”

The two passed by each other in the end, with Bren giving up on his attack, changing course at the last moment, and dodging… kind of, because Siu had still managed to land a few hits on his back as they separated. Bren was already turning around when a black flash almost blinded him as the tiny form of Arya darted past his face, her body splitting into faint, flickering afterimages, causing him to take an extra step backward by reflex, feeling as if he had to dodge and attack… And that was all it took.

Siu was already on him, and another strike landed on his injury… Then a second one, splattering another spurt of blood everywhere.

“Get—out—of—my—way!” Bren roared, his foot slamming down again, cracking the stone beneath him as he forced his weight outward, trying to disrupt everything around him.

At least it made the annoying fox dodge as Arya felt the tremors. She didn't dare to risk lingering, and she slipped away instantly. Naturally, that didn’t mean the pressure eased on Bren, because like a good partner, Marly came next, suddenly dropping down towards him from above. Expecting another misdirection, he didn’t react to her, which turned out to be a mistake. He suddenly felt a really sharp cut, slashing across his left shoulder line just as he was about to attack, making his eyes widen. He didn’t even see her clearly, but that beast… that rabid bastard bit him!

“Damn it—!”

Bren’s teeth clenched as he tried to ignore the pain and drove his elbow backward blindly, trying to catch something, anything, but it hit nothing but air as Marly was already gone. From the outside, their battle looked almost absurd.

“He’s… getting pushed back?” Someone asked, in complete disbelief.

“No way…”

“He’s Bren Tarr!” An Ember Circle member laughed out loud, mocking him, “The greatest warrior within our ranks, who can’t even catch two tiny beasts! No wonder he never goes into the forest and only bullies people.”

“What an embarrassing display…” Dui muttered, shaking his head, hearing the mocking laughter, grimacing at how easily Bren was being played with.

“He’s being controlled, and he can't do anything about that,” Seloryn murmured quietly, her eyes shining as she watched the fight. “The way Siu fights with his creatures is… Dare I say, perfect. I can see how well they are in sync, and they keep the doors open for Siu to pummel Bren. Heh… I wouldn’t want to fight with him on a one-on-one!”

“Please, Senior…” Dui said, glancing at her, “You can’t be serious.”

“I can, and I am.” She smiled happily. "It's up to you to decide if it's true or not."

“It’s not over yet,” Toban spoke up suddenly, “Bren hasn’t lost yet… And he can still be dangerous.”

It was the truth. He hadn’t lost yet… But he was being forced into a rhythm that wasn’t his, and that was the first step towards losing. Every time he tried to assert control, he was interrupted, and every time he tried to stabilize from that interruption, he was pressured by either Siu or his beasts. Every time he tried to retaliate against them, he was redirected, and it restarted the cycle. He was being… toyed with and whittled down… Worst of it all, it was starting to show. He could feel it… He was slowing down, his body aching, his breathing growing irregular, and if he couldn't find an opening, he would be in trouble. He also felt how his movements had grown heavier, and not in a way he could utilize…

“You think this is enough?!” Bren growled, his voice suddenly dangerously cold and deep.

“I know it's not,” Siu stepped back for the first time since the exchange began, putting just enough distance between them to reset his own flow, visibly shaking the ache out of his fingers that were clearly bruised and bleeding under his nails. Still, he ignored the pain and began rushing in again.

“FUCK! YOU!” This time, Bren didn’t delay… or move at all. He stomped and planted both his feet down as the ground cracked and rippled like water. But it was not all because on this occasion, multiple tiles flew up into the sky, miraculously blocking Marly’s path and interrupting Arya’s way… just enough. But that was all he needed. “COME!”

With almost a crazed roar, his eyes were fixed on Siu’s body, watching not his legs or arms, but his chest, counting his breaths. In, out, in, pause, out, all the shifts being marked through it. He could almost feel when he went from the Wild Cat to the Ox to give himself more power before the hit, then… There was a quick change of breaths and... something else, a form Bren couldn’t read, something that blurred the transition just enough to hide the exact moment of attack and its direction… But he ignored it, only watching Siu’s chest as it kept moving.

“There—!”

With a yell, Bren also inhaled, solidifying his stance and body… He watched as Siu’s palm slammed into his side again, but… he didn’t flinch, and just took it. He felt as the impact sank into him, the force dispersing through his muscles, reaching his organs, rattling them, but he didn’t care. It was now or never… Not even thinking, his muscles tightened, locking in place, and his arm came down with another spurt of blood from his injury, thanks to him overextending them.

It wasn’t a fast attack, and it wasn’t precise either, but… this time, it was unstoppable. Siu twisted to try and avoid it, but this time around, Bren’s strike clipped him, and for the first time around, Siu’s body shifted off balance, his grunt echoing out before finding his feet again.

“…!”

Gasps exploded through the arena, this time for the exact reason everyone expected to see from the get-go.

“He hit him!”

“Finally!”

“Wreck him, Boss!”

Not even hearing the shouts, Siu recovered instantly, sliding backward, his feet catching the uneven ground, hearing Bren’s cold, sneering voice.

“Got you… I will break your bones the next time…!”

Apparently, Bren felt like he understood now how he could fight against someone like Siu… He had to ignore everything he usually pays attention to. Otherwise, he will never land an attack. He was going to win, now he was sure of it again.

And despite Siu sensing the change in Bren, he also knew he couldn’t let off the pressure… and he had to continue. And with that thought, he was already attacking again. Watching him, once again, Bren braced himself to meet him, watching his breathing instead of his trajectory… as the next clash came harder than any of the others before.

Even as he ignored the tricks of Marly and Arya, Siu’s strikes managed to outmaneuver him and landed on his body again. Two… Three… Then four piercing feelings, but Bren didn’t yield; he just took them as his body trembled slightly under the impact, his muscles straining, his breathing pausing for a moment… He even tasted blood, but he forced it back down his throat and didn’t step back… instead, he reached out.

“…!”

Siu’s eyes flickered for a fraction of a second, realizing what was happening, and he was already trying to break off, but he was now too close to Bren.

He was aiming to grab him!

Bren’s arm shot forward, ignoring the opening of his stance and the incoming counter. This time, he took it on his injury, splattering blood once again, even ripping the skin open enough to see into the muscles, but he kept going forward, ignoring it. He was, this time, invincible.

Contact!

He could feel flesh, and the moment he did, his hand clamped down like a bear trap and caught Siu’s arm through his sleeve.

“Fucker… Now I've really got you!” Bren sneered as blood ran down his arm, and his breathing became ragged.

He could feel how his body screamed under the accumulated damage, but his grip tightened even more, and for a brief moment, the arena fell silent as everyone watched how Bren’s muscles moved, and he began pulling… And how Siu’s legs had lifted from the ground, against his own will…