Private Finished Can Plants Get Lost?

Noctua · Jan 11, 2020

Kalvin pulled his head left and right to stretch his neck. Outside his alcove, people were milling about with drinks in hand, their eyes on the brightly lit cage in the middle of the dim room. Kal paced around the alcove in the corner of the underground fighting hall. An old, yellowing bulb kept the tiny room lit but a thick black curtain blocked it from spreading light into the rest of the hall. Kal began shadow-boxing to keep the blood running through his veins. He'd warmed up but who knew how much longer the fighters out there will last? Often, the terrible fighters were scheduled earlier and the actual bouts were saved for the main event. Though the night was still relatively young, it wasn't unusual for "undercard" fighters to show a bit of endurance and wit in the cage. There was one time when the drunken crowd even began cheering for an older man who kept standing back up even though he'd been taking the beating for almost 10 full minutes. That was the first time Kal found this place and it wasn't too long ago.

A mixture of laughter and cheering erupted from the other side of the curtain. Then, a balding man's head appeared through the thick, dusty curtain. Half of his face was lit bright red from the neon lamps that lined the edges of the hall outside. "Bates! You're up," he announced gruffly. Kalvin frowned. "Isn't the Roddy kid getting in first?" The man's head shook and the shoulder Kal could partly see shrugged. "No show. Kid got mugged earlier today. No fighting for him tonight. Now get your ass in that cage." Kal took a deep breath as the man disappeared from view.

"Gents and ladies!" A female announcer called from outside. "Wasn't that a surprisingly quick fight? Don't worry, y'all. Have we got a pleasant surprise for all you early owls out tonight! Coming in for the next bout is a relatively new face in these parts. He's got an undefeated streak of 5-0. Let's give it up for Bate, the Heavyweight!"

He pulled off his shirt and did some light jumps in place before he began walking out of the alcove. The eager crowd that gathered around the middle of the room began to part for the next contenders. Grinning, Kal made his way through the crowd that greeted him warmly. The smell of cigarettes and alcohol was strong in the room. Grunted cheers and excited claps on the back from the people nearby were stronger. In the center of the room where a large cage stood on a raised platform, bathed in bright lights. It wasn't unlike any cage Kal had fought in before he arrived here. It was warded and magicked to prevent anything or anyone from getting in or out.

@Mint

Mint · Jan 11, 2020

After heading out to a music shop to check a few things out, Carmin was heading home empty handed. Unfortunately, the location of said music shop was a little out of the way, and on his way back he'd gotten a little lost. He'd seen people find their way using phones before, he thought as he pulled his out of his pocket, looking at it. Though that might not have been something his flip phone was capable of.

While inspecting the phone, two people on the street had begun yelling at each other, and quite loudly at that. Looking up to see what the heck was going on, it became apparent that the one guy had somehow really upset this lady and now she was burning with rage, in a literal sense. She was actually on fire.

There were only a few things Carmin couldn't deal with: bugs, the cold, people flaunting abilities, people acting immature, bad weather, crazy fantasy creatures, people being loud, being called a kid... Well perhaps there were more than a few things, but near the top of that list was fire. He saw that and quickly headed for cover in a nearby store.

He'd just sit tight for a few minutes for the situation outside to cool off. In the meantime, he could browse the... meat shop?

Carmin walked around kind of aimlessly, not really even paying attention to the stuff on display. He figured he could just keep doing that for the next ten minutes and then head out again. But before long, he'd attracted the attention of the guy behind the cash, who called out to him. "Hey kid? You planning on buying anything?"

Carmin, took a glance out the door to see that things had only heated up out there, then back at the guy. Perhaps if he told him the predicament, he'd just let him stay. "Uh, sorry, I'm not really here to buy meat... There were people fighting and I just needed to..."

The man at the cash quickly put his finger to his mouth, shutting Carmin up with a loud click of his tongue. Then he glanced down at Carmin's bracelet, an MSD bracelet, he recognized it and realized that Carmin wasn't a kid, and from what the plant kid said, he figured out why he was really there. "What you're lookin' for is just through that door in the corner there." He pointed to a door that looked like a closet.

Carmin stared at the door then back at the man. Was this a regular thing? Either way, a spot to stay safe when people were fighting in the streets sounded pretty alright to him. He opened the door and headed inside, replying "Thanks." And then closing it behind him.

After a short walk through a rather large hallway, Carmin began to hear noise, a lot of it. He kept going, and what he found was shocking to say the least. People, a lot of them, cheering around something? What in the heavens was going on here?

Carmin easily looked out of place in the arena, surrounded by larger rougher looking folks, most of which were spilling beer all over the place with their wild cheering. And for what exactly? He couldn't even see what was going on. Thankfully, he couldn't smell any of it, for once happy to not have a functioning sense of smell.

He was partially curious what was going on, but figured he probably wanted to stay out of it, heading back out of the place from the way he got in. At least that was the plan, until he spotted someone he recognized. It was that guy from the flower incident? That was enough to strike his curiosity into making him turn around and stay a moment longer.

Noctua · Jan 12, 2020

"Ain't looking like much of heavyweight, don't he?" the female announcer said from the platform just outside the cage. Kal glanced at her from the floor where he was pacing and shrugged emphatically. The gathered crowd chuckled. She smirked at him before she turned back to the men and women with a grand flourish. "Joining him in the cage is a regular patron and fan favorite. We've seen him grow out his record of 14-3 in this very cage. Let's everybody give it up for Gray Thunder!"

A cacophony of cheers filled the place, even from the raised area around the walls of the hall. On that upper level, the more important people watched. They had actual seats up there and were often those who made the highest bets on the fighters. Kalvin paced and paced in the area by his corner. Gray wasn't a big deal, he told himself. He could fry Kal's nerves with each punch but he had a weakness. Kal knew from watching his other fights that he loved the attention. He loved playing around with his opponents, too. He was a fan favorite for a reason. A pale, thin but lean man with a blond afro stepped through the crowd from the other side of the room. He was grinning and contently basking in the spotlight.

"Step in, gents," the announcer said. Kal and his opponent went up the platform and into opposite entrances of the cage, both doing what they could to keep their blood and adrenaline pumping. He locked eyes with Gray. They began to size each other up. Just outside, murmurs began to rise from the crowd. Kal looked around. The fight should've begun already. "Ah," the announcer said after a lull. "It seems one of our most generous patrons has called for a Twist."

The murmuring began again, louder. A woman next by the edge of the crowd chuckled. "Man, I love these Twists," she said loudly. She bumped her arm against whoever was next to her, which was a... plant boy?

Mint · Jan 12, 2020

Gray Thunder? Was this some kind of fight club? Were they going to be fighting each other? Carmin squeezed through to finally get a better view, wiping some dirt off of his uniform when he finally got through.

The man on the one side was most definitely the guy from the flower incident. That much quickly became clear. Although that was the only guy in the whole place that Carmin recognized. Nobody else was even vaguely familiar.

He was looking around at the whole place, from face to face, beginning to question if any of this was legal. He'd heard people talking about fighting each other before, is this what they meant? They come here and fight for entertainment? And with their powers? The idea kind of disgusted Carmin. Though it was unclear whether that disgust was coming from a place of wisdom or jealousy.

That's when the announcer said something about a twist? The heck did that mean? Carmin stared, squinting his eyes, until an arm bumped him from the side and sent him onto the floor. They didn't even bump him that hard, his body was just absurdly light.

He got up again right away, annoyed but uninjured. He really needed to get out of here, but it seemed that the crowd had blocked the path he used to get in.

Noctua · Jan 12, 2020

Kalvin's throat tightened. He hated these Twists. Some of them were simply out-of-this-world requests and others were plain schemes to put one fighter at an advantage. Whatever it was, he knew he had to win the game, especially if such a 'generous patron' was watching. He forced himself to put on a calm demeanor. He was ready for the Twist, whatever it would be.

"Gents! Ladies! Tonight's Twist is... to use raw, physical prowess to win the fight!" Kalvin's heart began to beat faster and the tightness in his chest disappeared. This, he was good at. This, he could actually do. This, he could maybe even enjoy. However, it seemed the crowd didn't agree entirely. Some booed, some cheered, some were screaming for another twist. Some screamed for the one-handed man to get out while it was still early. Kal paid them no mind. He'd won bouts with only one had before. "Aw, don't y'all worry. A no-powers fight means a no-cage fight! That's right, for the first time in a long time, we're seeing the ring instead of the cage, folks. So let's bring it out!" There was a flash of light, quickly followed by darkness. The next thing everyone knew, in place of the cage was a regular boxing ring.

Kalvin hadn't seen how it happened but he felt the shift since he was inside it. He looked around, feeling it easier to relax without the cage closing in on their space. He could even see the crowd better here. Their faces were much clearer without the mesh blocking and blurring them. The crowd, though initially awed at the seamless transition, had no choice but to watch and grumble. Some still shouted for a powered match but the announcer had gone on ahead and called the referee in.

The referee called the two fighters towards the center. He gave them a quick rundown of the rules. No dirty tricks. No powers. Kal and Gray nodded, eyes still locked. "Okay, fight!" A bell rang and both quickly began to circle each other. Kal adopted a loose stance while his opponent took a tight boxing stance.

After a few moments, Kal moved in first, bringing in a 1-2 hand to elbow combo and finishing with a roundhouse kick. It didn't connect. Gray began moving back the second Kal drove forward. Gray then countered with a quick jab. Kal blocked with his handless arm. He could feel a slight buzzing at the point of contact but it wasn't enough to cause any damage. He didn't let that bother him and he tried to go in again. This time, starting with a high kick. Gray ducked out. Just as he did, Kal saw a purple little flower in place of where Gray's face had been. He took a step back and to his right to take a glance at that purple flower again. And there he saw it: the flower on Carson's head.

What the hell was Carson even doing here? Gray's quick movement alerted Kal of his incoming attack. Kal barely had enough time to get out of his reach. What the hell was Carson doing here?

Mint · Jan 12, 2020

Physical Prowess? As in no powers, just a person fighting a person? Carmin turned to face the ring again, his expression kind of surprised. He wasn't really sure what to make of it, so he looked to see how the others in the arena perceived it. It seemed that a lot of people didn't like the idea, though not everyone was opposed to it.

Carmin's eyes then went to Kal then Gray and then back to Kal. With the missing hand, this definitely made Kal the underdog. But this was still better than if they fought using powers.

There was a lot of luck involved in physical prowess, genetics would always put one person at an advantage. However, hard work and training were also a huge factor in that. Someone could get lucky in the genetic department and still easily lose to someone who trained five days a week for their whole life. When it came to the abilities and nonsense that Carmin had discovered at Manta Carlos this was far less of a case. One person could spend their whole life working hard and then lose because the other person had the ability to shape shift and become the same thing but better in a matter of seconds. It was total nonsense.

Carmin assumed that at least one or both of the two in the ring were heavily dependent on some sort of power. How else would they be able to join something like this in Manta Carlos and not get killed. And so long as that assumption was correct, this fight would probably expose them.

Carmin stopped trying to escape and actually paid attention to the fight. Watching with careful eyes and little expression as the people around him seemed to get worked up.

When the fight began, Carmin found himself quickly proven wrong. Both fighters actually seemed pretty competent. And as far as he could tell, neither one was using powers.

It was shortly in that Carmin felt as though Kal had noticed him, in fact he might have served as a sort of distraction. Still, the flower boy's expression didn't change, he still kept his rather emotionless face.

Noctua · Jan 12, 2020

"Don't get distracted now, Bates. We're too early in for that kind of play," Gray muttered after a few more of his punches got blocked. Kal could feel static rising up his arm. Not enough to cause damage but enough to make it feel unfair, enough to goad, enough to make Kal angry had he been that type. Instead, Kal brought his full attention back to his opponent. He was right. It was too early in the fight to do anything crazy. They both needed to work up the crowd some more and had too much energy to spare. With the Twist being what it is, this bout could easily outlast any other fight the ring has ever seen.

This meant Kal needed to be more strategic than he typically was. He made a feint to see where Gray's feet would go. When the man moved his left foot back, Kal stepped in with a low kick to the side of the front leg. Another minute passes and Kal had made contact with that same leg for the sixth time. It was a strategy for the long game. Keep hitting with small kicks until the damage finally stacked up and made itself known much later in the fight. Plus, his feet were much bigger tools for him than those with a complete set of hands.

Gray seemed to catch wind of Kal's plan, however. He began moving his foot away whenever Kal made the move to go for it. Kal managed a couple more kicks he'd hidden in the guise of stepping forward to punch. Gray managed to counter one with a heavy uppercut to Kal's chin. The crowd cheered but just then, the bell rang and the referee stepped in.

They split to their separate corners. Kal was greeted by a couple of men who gave him water to drink and a towel to wipe his face with. He'd come here alone so he had no one to coach him. On the other side, Gray was sitting without a coach either, eyeing him. Kal broke his gaze and looked to where he'd seen the purple flower. He needed to be sure that it was Carson. Before he could find the flower again, the bell rang. "Thanks, guys," Kal said to them as they left the corner.

"Ready? Fight!" They touched gloves. Kal brought his head in and his shoulders high, taking a tighter stance. The new strategy was to bring the fight to the ground. With one hand, Kal was no good with submissions but he was great when it came to pinning opponents down. With Gray being slimmer than him, he was betting he'd be able to put in some good shots before the guy escaped.

This time, Gray rushed in first, his head ducking low and his arms going straight for Kal's waist. Out of instinct, Kal raised his knee. He missed Gray's face. Gray's momentum brought them both down. Before he could hit the floor of the ring, Kal managed to twist so he landed on his front. Immediately, he scrambled to his feet, barely missing Gray's hold. While Gray pulled himself up, Kal took the chance to deliver a punch to his face. As he reared back for a second punch, he used his left elbow to deliver another hit. Gray spat blood and stumbled. However, he was back on guard right away, leaving no more opportunities for Kal. He gave Kal a bloody grin. Kal kept his composure up and his chin in. Gray stepped forward and lifted his leg. However, instead of the roundhouse he was projecting, his leg went straight up into an ax kick. Kal's stepped back too late. The heel of Gray's foot reached his nose and went down to his chin, delivering a dizzying blow that made Kal stumble back, scowling in pain.

Mint · Jan 12, 2020

Despite the rather rough parting that Carmin had the last time he met Kal, he had to admit that he was cheering for the guy. Everyone seemed to think that Gray would be the clear winner, Carmin included, and yet Kal looked to be holding his own in that ring.

Not being much of an expert on this sort of thing, Carmin had no idea why anyone was doing anything, but he could tell that the two of them weren't just fighting with brute force. There were signs of actual strategy in their movements.

Up until a little after the break, it was actually kind of amusing, as much as Carmin hated to admit it.

It was when blood made an appearance that Carmin became less amused and more worried.

The closest thing to any of this that he'd ever experienced was watching mixed martial arts on tv with his dad so many years ago. But this was different. This wasn't as regulated or safe from what Carmin could tell. Someone could get seriously hurt.

Noctua · Jan 12, 2020

Kal's lower face was on fire with pain. Like with Gray's other hits so far, it was buzzing with weak static. However, given the fact that it was a face he hit, the effect felt stronger. He clenched his teeth and held a loose stance again. He was more comfortable in it and could react faster with it. He made another feint, moving forward with his lead leg. Before his punch could connect, he swung his back leg around for a spinning back kick. It pushed Gray backward and Kal took that chance to double in on the attack. He went low and clinched around Gray's hips. They fell together. Kal made sure to keep his shoulders only strategically heavy and his hips low so Gray wouldn't be able to use the momentum to flip them both over.

As Gray struggled to escape the hold, Kalvin kept his head and shoulder tight around the waist. Slowly, he moved upward Gray's body, staying heavy on him no matter how hard the afroed man bucked or elbowed him. Even when Gray made the move to bring the fight to the ground, Kal knew he only aimed for a ground and pound. Fortunately, Kal actually had some ground training. And he fully intended to use everything he had to win the fight, sans his powers, of course.

Gray stopped trying to escape the hold and began delivering elbows and punches to Kal's head. Soon, the blows weren't giving as much damage to Kal since there wasn't enough space to make them hurt. Kal made a quick move to put one knee on Gray's midsection. With his complete arm hooked around the back of Gray's neck, Kal began to hit the side of his head with an elbow. He didn't have as much space to build momentum with his blows, but his elbow was tougher than his stub. The blood scattered around already swelling lips sprayed on Kal's face. A body went in between them. The referee's, calling for a stop in the game. Kal got up, panting and bleeding from his eyebrow. He hadn't realized Gray had gone limp under him a few seconds ago. The crowd was cheering like crazy around them. Kal squinted through the lights. Where was Carson now, he thought. The men above were standing and clapping. He looked up at their dark figures and raised his fist and stump. The crowd cheered louder as the cornermen signaled for him to take his leave.

Kalvin slipped through the ropes of the ring and made his way down the platform. He walked through the crowd and went straight for the locker area. While he made his way through the dim room, he kept his eyes open for the purple pansy that Carmin grew on his head.

Mint · Jan 13, 2020

Carmin started wincing as hits landed from either party. He couldn't exactly feel pain anymore, but there was a time when he could and the scene made it very obvious to him that both guys were feeling a good chunk of it right then.

Before long, he didn't want to even watch anymore, turning to look for an exit again. It seemed the excitement only blocked him off further, which meant he wasn't going anywhere. At least for now.

With one hand, Carmin blocked his eyes so that he at least wouldn't need to watch. And within a few minutes, the match was over. Everyone started yelling and making noise again, and Carmin lifted his hand to see both fighters hurt pretty bad and one appearing to be knocked out. Gray. It seemed that the underdog won after all. Now he just had to wait for everyone to calm down and-

A lizard man to his side was glaring at him. Carmin gave a nervous glance back at the man, then looked away, but the man approached anyway. "The hell's a kid doin' in here?" It was clear that he was pretty drunk. Carmin didn't need a whiff of the man's stench to figure that out.

"I'm... not a kid." Carmin didn't sound angry for once while saying that line, not even annoyed. But that didn't mean he wasn't. To be honest, he already hated this guy with every fiber in him. He was just more afraid than he cared about his age at the moment.

"Ha, I saw ya coverin' yer eyes. Can't fool me jus' cause I'm a li'l tipsy." He got closer, but Carmin didn't really have the room to distance himself more. "C'mere!" Without much effort, the man just snatched Carmin up, holding him and attempting to check out the bracelet on his arm. Carmin struggled at first, but it quickly became apparent that his struggling was pointless. All it did was slightly annoy the guy trying to read his bracelet. "Stop squirmin' ya fuckin' pansy."

Carmin had basically stopped squirming already, but the word pansy seemed to get him to freeze up completely. For just a moment, he lost it. Finally snapping back as he spat on the dude's face.

Realizing what he'd done immediately after, Carmin began to apologize. "I... I'm sorry I just, I'm sorry."

But that wasn't enough. The drunk lizard man was clearly pretty pissed off about that, slowly using his sleeve to wipe the spit from his face. Then the man started chuckling to himself before bringing his gaze up to Carmin's fearful eyes. "You should'a let me believe you were a kid." He grabbed hold of Carmin's arm, touching the bracelet to let Carmin know how he'd figured that out.

Carmin looked around for help, but it seemed he was surrounded by people that were mostly preoccupied with discussing the fight that just took place. "I'm sorry, let me go, please?"

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Private Finished Can Plants Get Lost?

Noctua

Organized Chaos Enthusiast

Mint

Super Fresh

Noctua

Organized Chaos Enthusiast

Mint

Super Fresh

Noctua

Organized Chaos Enthusiast

Mint

Super Fresh

Noctua

Organized Chaos Enthusiast

Mint

Super Fresh

Noctua

Organized Chaos Enthusiast

Mint

Super Fresh