Dain vs. Tiao

[Kyukaku]

Cool.

[Tiao Lei Shen]

"Gavyns? Who the hell is Dain Gavyns?"

The girl Kurtz had working for him shrugged and pointed Tiao towards his ring for the night. Tiao's match the previous night, or rather earlier this morning, had been one of the first to finish. Consequently, so had his opponent's for tonight. Tiao hadn't been able to see anything about his opponent for tonight, but he knew he wasn't a student at Hircine. Still, the name seemed like it was important, and Tiao was certain he had heard it mentioned at least once.

The Pillar was hoping for a tired opponent this round, but since Dain likely wasn't student, he couldn't count on that. It was days like today that being an official at school really paid off. Tiao only attended the classes he wanted today, which coincidentally was only Film class. The rest of the day he went back to Darren's dorm and played some Xbox 360 before taking an afternoon nap.

Tiao walked into the ring normally today. He had made his impression deeply last round, and therefore could conserve more energy tonight. In theory at least. Tiao did no warm ups, as he preferred to fight cold. There was nothing to do now but wait for this Dain Gavyns to show his face.

Hopefully it would be soon; Tiao couldn't wait to rip it off.

[Dain Gavyns]

-- Quick Flashback --

Dain's forearm slammed hard against Dante's temple, right at the start of the match. A quick followup punch followed by a knockout side kick, and Dante found himself hitting the floor, unconscious after only a few moments into the fight. Dain looked down upon his fallen opponent for the briefest of moments, shaking his head in disappointment. There was no point in fights like these, not when there was no chance to feel the same amount of damage one was giving out themselves. As he took one final look out to the crowd, pointing at all of them, his index finger sweeping over the entirety of those who looked on greedily, Dain turned on his heel and left the basement. His quick match and his small theatrics afterward garnered a loud cheer from the audience, even louder by those who had wisely placed their money upon him. However, whether Dain's point was, indeed, an act of victory, or an act of further disappointment, upon those who would seek to make their living off the beatings of others, would be unknown to all but him.

With only about thirty minutes since he had woken up, Dain simply hopped back in his jeep, drove on home, and went right back to bed.

--- End Flashback ---

Once more, a good 10 hours sleep later, Dain stood in the gym's basement. It was around mid-afternoon, and the gathering crowd was already ready and in place. Bets were likely already going down, and some of the fights had even begun. Letting out a low, unimpressed sigh, the young man ventured forth to the students coordinating the fights. Dain nodded to the man, feeling no words necessary. He knew who he was, and after his extremely quick KO from last night, most everyone else did, as well. The coordinator simply returned the nod, and pointed towards one of the rings. Inside was a younger Chinese boy, dressed in semi-traditional garb, but topped with a Hircine High ball cap.

Stepping into the ring, Dain eyed Tiao under the brim of his own baseball cap, lowered to slightly cover his eyes. Taking hold of the brim between his index finger and thumb, he flipped the cap off of his head, tossing it out of the ring behind him. Likewise with his blue jacket, shrugging it off his shoulders and revealing a tight black tank-top. He rolled his shoulders a bit to loosen them up, but did no other warm-ups. His apathetic eyes never left Tiao's form.

"So far, you students have done little to impress me. You'd best not disappoint me either."

[Tiao Lei Shen]

As Tiao's opponent got into the ring, there was hiss of spectators talking amongst themselves. This could of meant one of two things. Either they were excited to see the match begin, or this Dain Gavyns must have left a good impression last night. If the second was true, then consequently the first one would be as well, and Tiao hated to dissapoint.

"If you think of me as a student, then I guess you don't know who I am, do you?" Tiao asked rhetorically, beginning to circle around Dain with a smirk on his face.

The movements the pillar made weren't intended as much as they were instinct to the fighter. He began to circle around Dain, enclosing in slightly with each slow step. The predator discreetly enclosed the distance between him and his prey, until the right time to pounce made itself evident.

"But that solidifies my suspicians. You're a graduate, but by the looks of it only a year or so. Now, if you graduated from here, you'd still know me. You could be from any number of places, but I'm gonna take a stab at it. Let me guess, you're a Varronite?"

Tiao would allow Dain time to speak if he so chose to, but immediately after he spoke, or a moment of silence, Tiao would be unable to contain his pounce any longer. Tiao would attack Dain directly to the front, taking one leap to get within range. Tiao's left hand went out in a tiger claw, the heel of his palm aiming directly for Dain's solar plexus if he chose not to react.

Keeping his right hand below his jaw, Tiao's fingertips began to tingle with anticipation. He could feel the intensity from Dain, meaning this fight would hopefully give him quite the rush. Tiao couldn't wait to see the fire leave Dain's eyes once he left him bloodied and broken.

[Kit Lee]

Where was everyone heading towards? Kit thought as he walked into a part of the gym he had not visited before. Following their lead, Kit soon saw a few people standing around the ring and within it, was a boy in a garb that looked chinese but was not completely traditional and another boy in a black tank top. Kit soon realized that the boy in the chinese garb was a pillar he had seen the other day. However, Kit had no idea who the boy in the tank top was. Kit also did not understand why the two were fighting but he stood there watching the two so that he could see their fighting styles and skills and also perhaps learn from what others were saying, what exactly was occuring here.

[Dain Gavyns]

The student began his advance, almost like a predatory animal, except not quite as silent as a usual hunter on the prowl. He circled Dain, who stepped into the middle of the ring, allowing the boy unfettered access to an entire circle. Dain moved little, only turning his head when needed, every time Tiao slipped out of his peripheral vision. Most of the fighters Tiao have fought would likely not notice his slow, but continuous closing in, but Dain was much more perceptive than most others, even in his current state of emotional turmoil. Even the 'appropriate speed' tactic would not go unnoticed. Dain, listening to the boy spout his mouth about 'who he was', paid little heed to the actual words of the boy, but did, as a cautionary measure, raise his arms up to about the middle of his upper body. They still held no real semblence of a martial arts style, but Dain could tell this one was either EXTREMELY overconfident, or had enough experience to warrant his mouth. Dain would count on the latter, so if the former was true, he'd be more than ready.

Tiao finally finished talking, ending his little speech with a question that Dain had no intention of answering. Instead, he spoke out in response to all that the pillar had said earlier.

"Your biggest problem here is that you're operating on the direct assumption that I give a damn who you are."

Tiao, either planning to attack in advance or unable to restrain himself due to Dain's quip, lunged forth, his left hand shooting out, fingers splayed somewhat and curled in a claw-like fashion. Clearly this was the attack of someone well-versed in the martial arts, as the technique and hand positioning looked almost impeccable. However, there was one thing Dain found in the attack that he could exploit, and so, he struck out himself.

Quickly, Dain's right hand shot forward, fingertips pointing straight ahead, also spread apart a bit. Hopefully before Tiao could react, Dain's fingers would slide into the spaces between his own, his fingers curling down, fingertips pressing against the first knuckle of all four of Tiao's fingers. Dain then applied pressure with his hand, pushiing Tiao's fingers backwards, dangerously close to the farthest possible point they could go before breaking.

Tiao would find himself in excrutiating pain, maybe even forcing himself to end his jump earlier than planned. Dain made no motion to follow up on his attack, opting instead to see just what Tiao would do from here. Instead, he just kept pushing Tiao's fingers back, waiting to see if he yielded, got away, or let his fingers break.

[Tiao Lei Shen]

Tiao leapt forward immediately following Dain's words. There was the hint of a smile upon his face, though not quite the smirk it had been. Dain's words had cut into Tiao, though not angering him as much as Dain likely believed. It was simple, Dain didn't believe Tiao to be of much importance; Tiao Lei Shen would just have to show him why he'd remember that name in the future.

The palm strike went forward, and to Tiao's satisfaction it looked as if Dain threw out his hand in a pathetic attempt to bat the strike away. Instead, Dain's fingers laced around Tiao's, halting the forward momentum from Tiao.

The hell...!?

It was certainly an unorthodox move, but not one that would cause much damage. Tiao brought his left foot back, standing linear with his right foot forward as his own fingers dug in, putting pressure upon Dain's top knuckles. In Tiao's mind, there was no doubt that his fingers were superior in strength to the graduate's. Following the tiger form more than any other arts, Tiao's fingers have been conditioned more than any other parts of his body. They could rip and tear flesh in the right spots with correct movements. If Dain wanted to see who's hand could take more punishment, he would.

Tiao kept his arm almost fully extended, pushing back against Dain's hand while squeezing against the joints. Dain had gotten his grip first, which is what saved the bones in his hand from being crushed in the beginning. Tiao didn't expect that Dain would be able to take the pain for long, but then again, he hadn't expected a counter such as this. Tiao glared into his eyes, smirking slightly through a clenched jaw. Tiao wouldn't back down, it just wasn't his way.

(OOC: I wanted to add more, but class is over and I got to leave the lab)

[Dain Gavyns]

The two warrior's hands met, both finding firm grasps, and a battle of attrition began. Tiao found himself a steady footing, and Dain, not to be out-done, mirrored him, his right foot planting in front of his left. Dain's initial grasp pulled Tiao's hand back, but Tiao fought with sheer strength alone, pushing it back to almost mid-way. Dain's own grip held, however, as he analyzed the situation silently and quickly in his head.

Extremely steady grip, good hand strength... this will be something to watch out for in the fight.

Dain continued to push against Tiao, continuing the battle for dominance as Tiao pushed back. It was clear that the boy had no intention whatsoever of backing down. So, Dain wouldn't force anything Tiao didn't want upon him.

It was a sudden shift of force. Instead of pushing with his hand, Dain suddenly pulled, not just his hand, but his whole arm back, hoping to take Tiao off balance. As he did so, he torqued his waist around with it, improving the force on this pull, as well as pulling his right leg back as well. The plan was that Tiao, jerked forward by the sudden change of force, would find his legs being entangled in Dain's right leg and fall to the ground.

If it would work, Dain would quickly take a short step back, distancing himself from the fallen Pillar.

[Tiao Lei Shen]

The two of them stood apart like a mirror image of the other. Their stances were held in similar positions, and both held the look of one who refused to back down. After a moment, Dain must of realized that Tiao would never back down, and decided to resort to another tactic. It was a good move, one that wasn't overly complicated, but it was something Tiao had seen coming a mile away. The only reason for that being, if Dain hadn't done something different by the time he did, Tiao had been thinking of doing the same thing.

As Tiao felt Dain suddenly pull in, he did the only thing to keep himself from losing balance: he played along. Tiao jumped off his right foot, pushing himself even faster into Dain with the added momentum.

He kept the tight grip ahold of Dain's hand, pulling back against it. Due to Tiao's jump, and the fact Dain had started the pull first, Tiao would only pull himself in closer, bending at the elbow. All the while, Tiao had brought his left knee up to the forefront, throwing it up to add in the height and force of the forward momentum.

The end result would be Tiao's foot leaping over Dain's leg as his knee traveled forward, sliding against Dain's upper leg muscles and thrusting upward into his exposed lower ribs.

Lets see if you got anything besides parlor tricks...

[Dain Gavyns]

Instead of giving with the motion, Tiao seemed to accelerate into it, leaping forward. It was a good tactic, giving the opponent more momentum than he knew what to do with. Unfortunately for Tiao, it was a tactic that Dain himself had used before in the past. In the end, however, it would be Dain's idea that would see it through to the end. Even if his intended plan of tripping the pillar would not work, he could still use Tiao's sudden burst of forward momentum to his own advantage, just so long as he steeled himself for what was coming.

Unable to move in any great amount, due in part to the fact that the attack was coming in so quickly, and in part that he could not for his next plan to follow through, Dain stuck his backside out somewhat, which brought his stomach back as well. This would cause Tiao's knee to miss it's mark of digging in under the ribs, but give it a more open target of the center of his chest. He steeled himself for the attack, and as soon as the knee was within range, Dain's left hand shot up and and held Tiao's knee and shin against his chest, and simply rolled with the attack. Turning his upper body towards the right and lifting his left leg, Dain had trapped Tiao close up against his body. Since he'd moved along with the attack, he'd feel only the most initial part of the strike, not with the full force he would have, had he simply stood there.

With Tiao's leg trapped and his forward momentum carrying them both over, Dain turned around and fell forward, cradling Tiao close to him and slamming the boy down onto the mat. Due to their clenched hands' positioning, Dain's arm would be right up against Tiao's, only as they fell together, Dain's weight would be centered on his right side, so that his forearm would fall across Tiao's throat, sandwiching his neck between the arm and the unforgiving mat.

[Tiao Lei Shen]

You will NOT take me down!

Tiao was once again surprised by the craftyness of Dain. When his opponent bent forward, Tiao had first assumed it to merely be an effort to lesson the knee strike. However, Dain seemed to have more in mind than just riding a blow as he wrapped his arm behind Tiao's knee.

It was true that man reacted quickest to the sense of touch, and it was this sense Tiao had always relied on. He had never required a game plan past tearing the opponent to pieces. He was a fighter of pure instinct and reaction, which came in handy in situations such as these. The second Tiao felt Dain's arm begin to snake into its position, he was already in motion.

Tiao had intended a follow up strike with his free left hand, which only readied its use all the quicker. His left hand shot out instantly, his palm aimed directly at Dain's nose. Opposed to his first strike, his left hand turned a quarter turn clockwise. As a result, when the heel of Tiao's palm would smash into the leaning forward Dain, his fingers began to do what they do best: tear at the flesh.

The palm would hit, and Tiao's fingers would slash through to the nose. Dain's forehead, cheek, and brow might have drawn blood from this or may have been nothing more than irritated depending on the thickness of Dain's skin. However, as the claw raked across one spot wouldn't remain in question. Tiao's longest and strongest finger, disregarding the thumb, dug in hardest, and as it raked it would meet what Dain relied on to plan his counters. Tiao would gouge the left eye of Dain, surely damaging the eyeball if not causing it to pop from the pressure.

The hit to the nose would likely have made Dain loosen up, but Tiao relied on the eye rake to have Dain withdraw his hand from his leg, and go to his bleeding face. If this was the case Tiao wold release his grip of Dain's hand and push away, soaking in the damage he inflicted upon his opponent. If somehow Dain still took Tiao to the ground and continued his forearm strike, Tiao's strike had positioned his left arm to deflect the attack from his throat, as Dain's forearm would slide down Tiao's own.

No matter what happend, Tiao was certain of one thing: Dain would bleed tonight.

[Dain Gavyns]

Shit!

With this hands and mind busy, Tiao's palm attack was looking ever so painful as it came in quickly towards his face. With nothing left to defend him but his own instinct, Dain did what anyone would do when left with no options in such a similar situation. He jerked away from it.

Quickly tightening his jaw, biting his teeth down together as firmly as possible, Dain's head jerked as hard to the right and up as he could, grimacing as Tiao's palm now smacked into the side of his jaw, damn-near dislocating it. Dain's eyes watered a bit from the intense pain, knowing that, had he not moved his head at an angle as he did, the strike would not have been as glancing of a blow as it had been, and, full-on, would have likely done much more damage than it had. The pain in Dain's face at the moment regardless was a testament to this student's fighting prowess.

It wasn't simply the strike, however, but what happened next that worried Dain far more.

Tiao's index and middle fingers, originally intended for the older male's eye, landed just above a below, and gouged down, leaving two bleeding red lines going from Dain's eye down his cheek. The lower two fingers, hitting Dain's much bonier chin, would not score as painful a hit, but the damage from the two longer digits would more than make up for it.

Dain scowled angrily, even going so far as to let loose a low growl of pain and rage as Tiao's fingers dug across his skin. The look and sound were almost feral, and borderline frightening, especially from someone like Dain. Such reactions were normally not commonplace at all for the once-cheerful Varronite.

Dain, however, was not simply sitting idly by as this happened. As he jerked his head up, Dain had decided that, due to this boy's aggressive behavior, he could no longer simply guide his momentum to the floor. Increasing the pace of his throw, Dain went from turning with Tiao and dropping upon him to literally throwing not only the younger boy to the side, as originally planned, but throwing HIMSELF to the floor on top of Tiao, putting additional speed and impact to the drop and the forearm attack to Tiao's throat, even if it meant walking away with two painful reminders of the fight he'd just had.

[Tiao Lei Shen]

Even though Dain was unable to fully defend himself from Tiao's strike, the Varron graduate had proved he had extremely keen insight, as he was able to see the strike coming early enough to change the target. It was that same insight that made Tiao wish he struck the eye all the more.

Tiao bent forward at the waist, bringing himself closer to Dain in attempt to strengthen the blow to cause even more damage. He had still struck his opponent, however his lean forward was a moment too late and Tiao had lost some power from his original strike. He felt his palm connect with Dain's jaw, and from the force of it Tiao wondered if his opponent would of been able to remain standing had he been able to reinforce his strike. Tiao tore the skin down Dain's cheek, drawing blood. In response, Dain let out a furious roar, echoing off the walls and drawing the attention of all spectators in the crowd.

Tiao's original hopes of having his limb dropped from Dain's grasp seemed to fall through, as Dain's grip only tightened, not loosened around his leg. Tiao had forced Dain into a fight or flight mode, and it was respected in the eyes of the pillar that Dain had chosen the previous of the two options. Regardless of that respect, Tiao would make it so his opponent would regret his decision.

As Dain turned to slam Tiao to the mat with even more force than first intended, Tiao didn't waste a single moment following his previous strike. As a result of bending at the waist and leaning forward towards Dain, Tiao found himself all the closer to the older fighter. Tiao's left hand slipped off Dain's face and found a grip upon the right strap of Dain's tank top. He bent his elbow, wedging his arm around the neck of Dain which was all the easier from Dain's lifting of his head to avoid the full force of Tiao's strike. He brought his arm in tight, holding Dain's head under his armpit and against his ribs in a makeshift headlock.

As they quickly approached the mat from Dain's slam, Tiao would pinch his arm in as tight as he could, preventing Dain from slipping out at the last instant. Arching his back, Tiao tugged back on Dain's head. Falling to the ground, Tiao turned the slam into a mock DDT. Exhaling to not lose his breath from the impact, Tiao would hit the mat eventually, but not before the skull of Dain would cushion the fall.

[Pain Killer]

I had a helluva time judging this one, as it was so close, but Tiao squeaked out the victory here.

Winner: Tiao

Finish up by Sunday.