A foul mood indeed, the thoughts of his past few days in these lands had brought him to such a mood. Rage blinded his judgment, which is partially the reason he came here, which was to relieve some of the undeniable hatred, which burned deep inside of him. Czarrov’s features had changed after his last confrontation, red streaks stretched across the contours of his cheeks, winding back towards the lobe of his ear. Eyes burned a deep scarlet, hiding every trace of white and tint of his eyes including his green hues. Muscles tensed spasmodically, eyes narrowing sharply focusing upon the path before him. It had been a dark winding corridor, which wound this way and that before initially bringing him to a gate. Pausing in his steps, awaiting the unveiling of the arena. Idle clicks emitted from the gate, as it lifted upwards disappearing from view.

Heavy footfalls carried him forward, sending loud clicks up from the tiled pathway heading up to the arena floor. Finally his features, his body and the rest of him came into view, as he stepped up the stairs and onto the leveled arena floor. Emaciated tendrils kicked up in the sudden uproar of dark energy, which swirled in a violent torrent around his body, engulfing him in a dark mist. Digits of his right hand curled inwards to the palm of his hand, balling his hand into a tight fist. Aggression stirred throughout his mind, floating across several different thoughts that had only added fuel to the fire. He was beyond reasoning and only wanted to bring devastation upon anyone who strayed too close. The scent of blood lingered in the air, driving him into a frenzy, as he waited impatiently for an opponent to make their way out of the wood work, so-to-say.

*Looking back to the Match handler, he snickered and laughed.* You didn't match me against another complete apprentice, have you? I grow bored of fighting pushovers and I need some real challenge....someone who'll give me a "run for my money" so to say.

*Kore was laughing untill he looked into the arena and saw who he was facing. He cracked his neck left and right, then shrugged his shoulders.* This guy isn't an apprentice, I can see it in his eyes...good choice Damacles. *He walked untill he was several yards from his opponent.* A fair day for a battle, wouldn't you say? *His hand raised up and ran through his hair slowly as he smiled.* I am ready whenever you are*His hand fell to his side, quickly drawing his Sword, Kilgorin then watched the other person carefully.*

Czarrov brandished no weapon and it really made no different if he had or not. He could still deal a great deal of damage as it was, so weapons were nothing of need for him. With a cautious and slow ascent forward, his violet eyes brought their undivided attention upon this man, never leaving and never blinking. He was past reasoning, or even wanting to converse; all he really wanted was to release his frustrations. This man seemed formidable though, a man he would have to watch carefully, as he would have to do with each of his opponents, but this man was rather uncanny and also a threat to say the least. Within nearing this man, he slowed to a sudden stop. Hands twitched for a moment as the scent of blood caught his senses. Ah yes, the man reeked of death and it had been imminent. Violet hues caught the man’s own tainted hues, gazing into them with an undivided stare, “….A battle is a battle…And a fight is a fight….No matter what you consider it, it should be interesting to say the least.” With that said his hand drifted upwardly by his side, digits of the hand curling slightly to expose the sharp nails near the tips of each individual digit, almost as if taunting, but not quite. Though it would be stupid for him to take the first attack, seeing as his adversary had quite a bit of a range differential over him, if he so decided to attack the man close ranged, all he’d need to do is shift the sword. Sure, he could dodge it, but being on the offensive is just going to put him in a defensive position for the first part of the battle until he could regain an offensive attack that would work. Indeed the favor wasn’t in his hands, but thing was….He would stand more of a chance on the defensive from the beginning, so he would just have to wait for his opponent to attack first, “…How about you start things out? That’s if you still have intentions of using the sword…..” Apathetic he remained, as his eyes moved to the sword that resided within the man’s grasp.

*Kore looked at his adversary, wondering how powerful he really was, and very interested in leveling the field and turning this battle into a spar. He had some experience in Closed-Quarters-Combat and felt this a good time to use them. With his one arm, he knew he would stand no chance, he concentrated on his arm and spoke several words in his native language. Slolwly Black magic began to form into the missing part of his arm. It was smooth and looked solid. The only difference to his other arm was his fingers, which were sharp and rigid. He sheathed his sword and undid the scabbard. He heaved and tossed the sword to Damacles.* I better not find even a smudge on it. *Moving his right leg behind him, his feet formed almost a right angle. His created arm was cocked back and his real arm was up- His elbow near his ribs and his fist ahead of, but next to his face.* Attack first? Sounds like fun. And don't worry about the arm, it won't hurt ya unless I make it.* He winked and ran towards him. Halfway closing the gap, he jumped and let his feet skid across the soft floor, kicking up dirt. He stopped only two feet from his enemy. His right foot in front of him and his left foot behind him, His side was facing this person as he went for his attack. Kore's left arm hooked sharply for the man's jaw, hoping his first hit stunned the man, opening a window of opportunity for more hits.*

-Czarrov studied this man before him in quite a quizzical manner as he began speaking, but unclearly. Without another word an extension of the man’s arm grew, which seemingly caught Czarrov’s attention, but only for a moment. Gradually he brought his limbs upwards, drawing his left arm slightly in front of his right, intending to use his right for a form of counter. As the man made his ascent towards him, his left hand twitched eagerly only to find the man attacking with his own left. Quickly his left hand snapped out to the black matter of the man’s own, exposing his palm to make impact with the conjured limb. Once it made contact with the palm of his hand he pivoted off his left foot, pushing himself backwards into a clockwise rotation. As he neared a 180-degree rotation, his right arm drifted upwards keeping it bent at the elbow, as he drew it back, bringing the elbow out to make contact with the right side of the man’s face. Surely it was a good counter, but no less foolish, seeing as the man could have easily delivered a blow, or still could do so into his kidneys, despite surrendering himself to a hit, but the thing was. This man would deliver more damage to him that he would to the man, but if Czarrov was the only one to make contact it would be a forceful blow due to the rapid pace of his rotation.

(( Sorry about the short one, didn't have a whole lot of time. ))

*In the fray and in the heat of battle, Kore was acting on instincts alone now, for his knowledge of closed-quarters-combat was nothing compared to what he noticed from his opponent as what Kore thought was a surefire hit turned on him, an elbow going straight for his face. Sure he could dodge it, but he saw an opening which he could exploit. Taking the hit to his jaw, Kore was thrown off momentarily, but his right arm made a vertical circle. First, his elbow wedged itself into the space between his opponents forearm and bicep. Then he straightened his arm out, then bent it again, locking around the arm that struck him. His right foot pivoted as he had a hold of his arm, then he turned his body following his right arm, now at the man's back. His left arm moved around to wrap around the man's neck as his left knee rose from the ground to smash into the back of the man. He thought subconciously that this counter, hit, counter, hit merry-go-round could last for a while and only hoped he could withstand the hits he would endure only to land his own.*

(( Its okay, its good nonetheless...this battle is getting good and it's already started ^_^))

Caught off guard he felt the entrapping arm of the man coil around his neck and pull snuggly against his throat momentarily cutting off his air. Shortly after the feeling of the shifting in his spine sent a shockwave of pain across his body, as the man’s knee came into a rough contact with the structure of his spinal column. For a moment he felt his body go numb before regaining feeling once again. Quickly his mind raced to find a way to get out of this and that would involve something he wasn’t willing to do. Kore had some advantages against Czar, but some were limited, especially in the strength department. Due to Czarrov’s demonic strength he could outmatch Kore. Unfortunately, strength wouldn’t get him out of this. There needed to be a drastic measure taken which would have to result in Kore releasing him. If he couldn’t get Kore off him soon, the end might be around the corner. Without another thought or warning, he forced his torso forward, using every last bit of strength he could muster. He felt the heavy jerk of the arm against his neck as it bared the weight of Kore’s frame, causing him to release a gurgled growl of frustration. The strain on his neck was rough, but it was manageable for the soul factor of trying to get him off. The Arena stands blurred and soon he found himself looking straight at the ground as it blurred as well. He felt weightless for a moment, due to the quick rotation he threw them both into. Hopefully the contact with the ground would be rough enough to cause Kore to at least loosen his bind, which would allow him the chance to break loose; however, that wasn’t factoring the 225 some pound frame of Czarrov’s to come crashing down upon Kore as well and the speed of the rotation he threw them both into as they barreled to the ground.

*Content with connecting and sure he had the battle in the bag, Kore got cocky, and then found himself mid-air. Not being able to do much about what was happening, he gritted his teeth and started mumbling a few words. As they made fell to the ground, the ground itself was rising up to meet them. In jagged groups, the ground uprooted and turned the flatland arena into what looked like horrible result of a war. Any place for a solid footing were few and far inbetween. Hitting a diagonal piece of what used to be the arena battlefloor, he gasped and felt all the air being forced out of his lungs. The both of them slid down the diagonal piece of ground into a decent sized circle in the middle. More than seven feet deep, the floor of this crater was smooth, but the mouth of it was jagged and had rocks jutting out in every which direction. Letting go from the impact, Kore had managed to push his opponent away and rise to one knee before a devious though entered his mind and he instantaneously began chanting dark hymns.* You...you're very good. But I have a little treat in store for you. Lets see how your martial arts have prepared you for this.*When he finished saying this, his eyes were crackling with energy. Holding up his real hand, a small dark ball was forming in his hand. He grinned menacingly* Lights out man*He crushed the ball in his hand, instantly dispersing the black magic around the crater. Instead of taking form, it just blanketed the two warriors in complete darkness.* Welcome to purgatory. Wondering though what our fate is. I can't wait to see, can't you? *He entered his original stance and just grinned, waiting for Czar, which thanks to his ebon eyes can see him as clear as day, to make a dumb move and get too close.*

It all seemed to have happened within a matter of seconds. The words that flowed from Kore’s lips and to the weightless sensation he felt the second after noticing the movement of the ground winding upwards, before coming to an initial halt near the base of the well sized crater. Czar rolled to his hands and knees as soon as Kore pushed him from atop of him. Slowly he rose to an erect base, slightly slumped as he had. The prior blow he received to the back was the main cause of his slow rising fashion; however, he did his best to shrug it off. Czar was momentarily fazed by the intricacy of the fighting plane that enveloped them both, but was soon brought back to reality by the sound of Kore’s voice and the words, “Lights out.” Violet hues drifted upward only catch a glimpse of Kore’s feet before going, ‘blind.’ A faint expression plastered itself upon his countenance, before the faint noise of shifting rock emitted within the now silent crater as Kore slid into his stance. Czar could pick out the general region the noise came from, but he was no where near close to good at blind fighting and it would be foolish to launch an offensive despite knowing the general direction in which Kore was stationed. The very idea itself was foolish and shouldn’t be attempted unless you were truly insane.

Czar’s eyes dilated in false attempts to adjust to the sheer sheet of thick darkness that shrouded them. His hopes of winning this battle were fleeting with each passing moment as each of his ideas failed, before finally coming across one. He dwelled upon the thought and how much time he had exactly before he was open to another trick like this. With a simple nod of his head he launched his plan into action, not taking another moment to think it over.

Quickly he bolted off from his current position, breaking out into a dead sprint in the general direction in which he had heard the shifting rock come from, which was in fact Kore’s general location. Unable to judge the distance between him and Kore, he kicked in the second part of his plan; the spell, in a dry barely inaudible strand of uttered words a small barrier formed around him covering nearly ten feet in its diameter, which engulfed him fully. Slowly and steadily the black mist faded from his line of sight; however his sight still wasn’t quite clear due to Kore’s dispersion of the mist instead of concentrating it. The mist seemingly only whirled around the crystal clear globe around him as he continued his ascent into it. The bright side, he was able to see nearly five feet in front of him, which provided him an opportunity to take the offensive. Without the slightest of delay his right arm came up near his chest, bending at the elbow, allowing his bicep to press against the bare skin of his forearm. His left hand drifted up to his right and clasped around it, ready to force his right hand in against his chest to provide a more forceful blow with the elbow. Upon the slightest sight of Kore, he planted his right foot firmly upon the ground, using his momentum to propel him forward as his right elbow arced out to the left side of Kore’s jaw-line in hopes to deliver a blow that would hopefully knock Kore off balance and allow him the chance to deliver another blow that would hopefully end the battle.

Eyeing the movements of this man, Kore was only curious as to what he had up his sleeve. He knew the spells he casted was only a diversion to buy him some breathing time. Holding his real hand to his chest, it pulsated faintly, his cuts and bruises mending themselves at a crawling rate. His eyes followed his opponent, keeping track of the man's movements. He was nervous as to what was to happen next, for both of their next moves could mean the end of the fight, or just continue this battle, but in a confined space as this, there is nowhere to run or hide. In a straight up melee, it would be rough for him to pull the upper hand against this man who seemed far superior to himself, and especially more rough when he saw the spell being cast. -An anti-magic field?!- Kore thought as his eyes widened.

Trying to stay as hidden as possible, Kore stood up against the edge of the crater, worried about his created arm being voided by the field. His real hand was readied by his blade, knowing this would be unavoidable. Gritting his teeth, he was ready to pounce on his opponent. After moving his first foot however, it sunk into the soft ground, sending him to the rugged floor. Before he hit the floor however, his hand that was gripping his blade he tensed up and joined with his magical hand to draw it and be ready for anything to come. He wasn't prepared for what came straight for his face though- a giant elbow.-What a fight-was what he thought before he was struck by his opponents imposing elbow.

His jaw felt like it was going to rip right from his head as the blow sent him into a spin as he hit the ground. By this time Kore had already drew his sword. After he hit the ground, he rolled on his back and pointed the sword at his opponent. He attempted to grip the blade with both hands, but due to the anti magic field he was in the middle of, the magic arm disappeared and couldn't be conjured back up. Holding it with one hand, he tensed his arm, steadying his grip and keeping a steady eye on Czar's follow-up attack, which he knew would come after a successful hit. Patiently waiting, he moved his jaw around, popping it back into place, wincing along with it.

A grin played itself across his slender lips as he felt the bone of the man’s jaw shift against his own elbow, which brought the man into a spin to the ground. Finding himself off balance, Czar took a few paces forward trying to regain his balance, before noticing that he was now hovering over Kore. Paying the blade no mind, he launched his follow up attack to the prior. Czar’s arm cocked backwards before launching itself forward. Digits curled inwardly to the palm of his hand as he swung his right hand out into an arc for the left side of the man’s jaw again. A look of shock crossed his countenance as he felt the cold steel of the blade gliding across his exposed skin, splitting it open to the dirt that drifted languidly through the air having been stirred up by the movements of both combatants. The tip of the blade caught his necklace, pulling it backwards as the blade remained stationary and Czar pressed forward. Feeling a slight tug at his neck and then nothing at all, his stone fell lifelessly to the ground in a clatter. Czar put all further actions to a dead halt, bringing the fist that threatened Kore to a halt merely inches from his skin. The markings up his cheeks wasted away leaving no trace of their existence. His violet hues changed in their pigmentation back to the innocent green they were earlier. His green eyes focused upon Kore, before drifting to the blade that remained slightly buried into the flesh of his neck. For a moment he didn’t move, not wanting to create anymore damage, but keeping it there was probably far worse than removing it. Slowly a shaky right hand lifted to the swords slender blade, digits outstretched and then coiled around its nimble frame. Having it firmly in his grasp, he pushed it outwardly to the left side, before releasing it only to watch it linger there, “I thought we agreed to no weapons,” Was all he managed to force out through clenched teeth. The wound stung as the dust filled air relentlessly attacked its exposed folds of unprotected skin. Scarlet fluid ran along his collarbone and other numerous areas, as it seeped fluently from the open wound. Czar lifted his right hand to his neck and placed it over it, before pressing down into it in hopes to slow the blood flow from the wound. Taking a few steps backwards, his green hues shifted downwards, locking onto the near defenseless Kore, “Seems that we’ve come to a stalemate….If you wish we can continue till one of us are dead….It makes no difference to me, but I’m not going to fight you while you still have that.” Czar’s head motioned towards the sword that rested in Kore’s grasp, “I would use my weapon, but I haven’t nearly come close to learning how to use one properly. I find them slow and until I harness the art of fighting with a weapon, I’ll continue using my hands…Despite the other person having a weapon, but if you really feel up to it, I’m game.”

*Using some slight momentum, Kore rose to his feet, his blade still drawn, pointed at the man's face. The once shimmering blade was now dulled by crimson blood. He smirked and whipped his blade around a few times, the blood whipping off the blade. Then with a flick of his wrist and quick movement, the blade was once again sheathed. He tilted his head to the side and gave the man a thumbs up* Incorrect, I didn't say I wasn't going to use any weapons, but I preferred not to draw it on an unarmed man. Personally, you should feel honored, for if I must draw my blade in a duel such as this, you almost had me. Good going. *Around him he could hear the crowds yelling for more blood. Kore with an instantaneous snicker, gritted his teeth and roared at the crowd. Going silent he held up his hand and began muttering words at an incomprehensive tone. His opponents wound started to seal up, leaving a noticable scar left behind. After he finished healing him, he dusted his hand off on his knee then held it out* The name's Kore and I'm very impressed by your skills. I could use someone like you watching my back...Watch out! *Kore shoved the man out of his way and held out his hand. Crackling dark magic poured out and obliterated a chair that was thrown at them to instigate more fighting.* Enough! This match is done. All betters, I apologize, but this will end in a draw, so collect your money and get out of here you pathetic excuses for humans. *As he said that, he saw a seemingly tamed behemoth enter the arena. He gulped and looked at the man he shoved to the floor.* Ummm....you ever encounter the "clean up crew"? If ya have, lucky you. If you haven't, here it is. Now I propose we band together to smite this beast, for even I have problems with it alone. *He held out his hand to help the man up* Sounds good to you?

Dragging his right hand down along his pectoral muscle, the blood streaked and fanned across the exposed skin of his chest in trail following the hands movement. A malicious grin crossed his slender lips, as his eyes sifted across the man before him, “I couldn’t have cared less if you had used your weapon the entire time, it would still make no difference. Even so….It doesn’t matter, we’ve found ourselves at a dra—“ His voice trailed off as he felt the wound on his neck contract and then seal over, disappearing as though it never existed, “Hmm…If you really wanted to, you could have continued the battle and won it for my wound would take its toll upon my body, though you hadn’t….Is there a specific re---“ Once again his voice trailed off as the man shoved him backwards, which caused him to fall into a sitting position upon the ground. Stirring for a moment, he slowly pushed himself to an erect stance, entirely ignoring the man’s offer for assistance. Hell, he would have preferred getting hit by the chair instead of getting shoved to the ground. Czarrov was nothing shy of pride filled and didn’t take kindly to being pushed around, literally.

Rolling his shoulders backwards, a few idle cracks emitted from the joints as they rolled in a counter-clockwise fashion. Slowly he tilted his head to the far right, hearing a few cracks emit from the vertebrae in his neck, before tilting his neck to the far left only to have the same result. Czarrov’s right hand then clenched tightly and gnashed into the palm of his left, as his left gripped tightly around his fist, the palm of his hand snapped inwardly against the digits of his right, forcing them further in to hear a series of cracks emit from the joints. He repeated the process with his left, before turning his attention to Kore, “Clean up crew….Sounds….Interesting…..” Czarrov then turned to face the arena’s entrance only to spot an odd creature towering in the gaping entrance, before stepping out into the arena, “…I suppose I have no choice, do I? Besides, what the heck is it?” Czarrov’s right brow quirked in question to the strangely revolting creature before him, “It looks like something the hells spit out.”

No, hell didn't spit it out, it was dragged out from it instead. This beast is called only by behemoth and was never meant to leave the underworld, but somehow, these rich bastards got their hands on one. It routinely kills any combatants left in a draw because there must be corpses for it to feed on....bastards knew we were an even match....we were set up to feed this damned thing. *He glanced over to his newly made partner and whipped his sword in a vertical circle* I think this feeding time will turn into its last supper, but again, we must be careful for unlike most beasts, this thing has the qualities of a black dragon and a hill giant with the temperment of a nursing lioness. Stay on guard.* After saying that he climbed his way through the debris, only to see the foot of the thing, knowing that he would have to climb this two story tall hellspawn. What kept running through his mind was how one was attained. He shook his head, ruffling his hair. He kept close to the thing, under its vision and away from it's destructive claws which one nail equaled the size of his body. Looking at the man he healed, he waved on for as he could tell the coast was clear so the both of them would scale this damned thing and bring it to its knees. Squinting his eyes, he forced his magic arm to reappear instantaneously. After forming, he felt a lashing at his soul for the speed he drew the magic at. Wincing, he continued to wave on his newly formed partner.*

For the moment he sat in reverie, studying the beast before him and it’s rather likeness to the creatures he encountered in hell. Perhaps, this thing was the very same thing he had been accustomed to dealing with down there. Idle hands laid dormant at his sides as he watched this man, Kore take the bull by the horns, so to say. Within moments Kore had been on the creatures back, beckoning Czarr to follow, but instead he lied in wait. Green piercing eyes grazed along the creature’s structure, studying its integrity at certain points and flaws in other points, trying to surmise the best plan of attack to take the creature to the ground. It wasn’t like his nature to attack first without summing up every possible threat against such a thing and certain this would be the task at hand, for every vocal point on the creature would be everything. From what he knew about the demons down in the pits was that each and everyone of them were far from slow and could react on an instant due to their ability to contradict movements. Hell, demon’s lived to fight, which is why Czarrov was here, originally.

Jeeringly, Czarr made his ascent forward; keeping his eyes deadlocked on the creatures, never fading to look away. He wanted to maintain eye contact for a numerous of reasons, he had wanted the creatures attention on him and not Kore, that and he had a better of perception of what it intended to do should he step in range for the beast to attack him. Slowing to a halt, his right hand lifted from his side and in front him, his open palm exposed to the sky. For the moment his hand glowed a bright red color, the shape of a mace manifested in the palm of his hand. Clasping his digits tightly around it, he brought his right arm back and over his shoulder, before drawing it forward with all the strength he could muster. Snapping his arm downwards, his digits released the handle of the mace moments before his arm came to a parallel position with the ground. Green eyes watched the mace as it rotated in a frontward rotation through the air as it headed for its destination, the right knee of the beast. With a loud crack as the head of the mace burrowed deeply into the flesh and bone of the creature’s knee, it let out a ear numbing howl of rage. Czarrov’s eyes darted to Kore and nodded his head, “His target will be me, he’ll show no interest in you and won’t know you’re even there, so take the chance and do your best to take him down!” Just as Czarr had said that the beast took off and headed in his general direction, breathing like a freaking bull giving chase. Loud thuds and cracks emitted from the arena’s ground as the beasts heavy weight caused it to indent the surface with every bounding step it took. For a moment Czarrov took a pace back, but halted any further movement waiting to see things play out.

*Ideas flashed through Kore's mind as to how to handle this thing. Only having to fight one of them in the past, he was still unsure how to handle it with just two people- his first time involved several other fighters and it was only a child. This one seemed full grown and very irritated, its spire-like spikes seemed to pulsate with dark energy.

A slight howl could be heard coming from his blade as he twirled it in his hand. Sheathing the sword, he reached to his waist and for once in a long time, he reached to his waist and gripped his demon claws. As he strapped it to his real hand, he heard an all to familiar and chilling voice play upon his ears.* You thought you got rid of me at that temple? You would only wish it were that easy.

Kore's eyes widened as he heard Lim Dúl's whispers, each word making his skin paler. Looking down to the claws, he noticed it growing a dark aura around it, and each time it pulsated, Kore felt a pin going through him. He shook his head and ran after the beast that now had its attention shifted elsewhere.--This is only my imagination, I'm not hearing the voices of that lich I killed-- He thought to himself as he prepared to go through with whatever plan came to mind, rushing to intercept the behemoth.

To stop the thing, he had to scare it, or at least block it from its primary target. Then a solution arose as he stopped running, his hands moving in intricate patterns, preparing himself for a spell. The movement of his hands began to show red tracers, slowly moving faster and gaining more transparency. His hands a red blur, he stopped them, then snapped his fingers. The snapping of his fingers set his hands ablaze, along with his armor.

Looking up, he shone a sinister smile and clapped his hands together. The arena began to heat up quickly. Moving his hands apart, a ring of fire instantaneously erupted around the beast, stopping it in his tracks.* Heh, like herding cattle....* The ring of fire rose to a point where only the beasts head was visible. Not wanting to test the fires, the behemoth stay put in the barrier.

Kore strolled to the ring of fire, then with ease walked through it unscathed due to his engulfed armor protecting him from the blazing heat. Coming inside the ring, Kore's eyes met with the behemoth. For a few seconds there they stood at a stalemate, waiting for the first one to make a move.

Kore raised an eyebrow, then winked at it. Making a jerking motion to the left, the beast lunged to its right to catch Kore on his run. After Kore jerked to the left however, he hopped back, letting the oncoming claw get close enough to the floor to take action against it. Lunging foreward, Kore's speed was unmatched by this thing as he sunk his demon claws into its wrist. The beast bellowed and lifted his hand up, taking Kore with it. While he was being lifted, he quickly undid the grips to it, sending him falling to the floor. Kore made a soft thud on his landing, followed by a roll away from the thing. As he rose to his feet, he drew his samurai blade, and another old weapon of his, Kilgorin, his formidable blade that he used to win the Festival tournament. Both blades shimmering from the light of the fire, he began to run around the ring of fire, on both the inside and the out, confusing it and sometimes burning it as it continued to try to slash and stomp it.*