A Masked Conundrum! Survive the Vulbeatdown! [ATLAS/CLOSED]

[Aroma]

It was a somewhat quiet afternoon, a gentle breeze was blowing through the air. The blissful trill of bird song was just barely audible from the trees.

SMASH!

Or rather... It would be, had a large brick of a woman not been training for her seventh consecutive hour. Putting her punching bag through its paces, also her seventh consecutive in a row.

BOOM!

Following a loud tearing sound and a crashing of chains and sand pouring out. Make that her eighth one. Slinging it over her shoulder from her closet of several tens of the same "Iron Gorilla" brand of punching bags, and hooking it on the hanging point. Smashing her fist against it, Aroma grunted. There had to be a better way to train than just this, there were no pain receptors in a punching bag, how could she know how much damage she was doing for real? And even if punching bags could feel pain, well...

That would be weird. Would they be able to feel other things too? Happiness, sadness? Love, loss? It was a strange thing to think about, but it did make a change from her usual old thoughts. That said, it was hardly productive either... Aroma sighed, stopping her punch just shy of having enough force to embed the eighth punching bag into the wall. She needed an actual person to train with... The one with the bandana complained too much, so that left... Atlas.

Of course, Atlas! The person who was more wall than man. If she recalled correctly, he should be in his study... Giving a nod, Aroma left her room and made her way down towards it. Ignoring the young man seemingly training under Atlas, apparently named Trent, playing some kind of game about a blue haired man with a sword.

And no pants...

Regardless, the bulky woman opened the door to Atlas's study in silence. Walking up to him before simply uttering the words "Training." and throwing a punch at full force to the side of his cranium

---

Atlas Steele 

[Atlas Steele]

"Ah, Aroma, Are you done working in the fields! I heard you tear your way through the punching bags on the ground floor!" As he would smile towards her before being his in his face upon turning his head, causing a bit of spittle to escape his mouth as he was forced to see his entire vision turn upside down, spinning backwards in place with his chair flicked upwards after bouncing against a small crack in the floor that it hanged upon.

After the entire movement got him stuck on the ground with the top of his head, his mask not moving an inch in surprise as the crack that soon appeared all across the front became wider and wider before the fragments fell to the ground, revealing a smaller mask with angry eyebrows drawn on it as Atlas his tone had not changed from his jolly tone.

"It seems that you have some repressed anger regarding the fact that the punching bags we have been buying start tearing the first moment you get into training hu- Oooh~" As he made a rather effeminate sound when his chair landed on his behind with a solid thunk before then looking at the situation at hand.

"Okay, Shall we make a deal, If you can open the window and put my chair down without shattering it this time, I am willing to train with you, and you can use me as a punching bag, Alright?" He spoke, with his hair made an absolute mess as his body was still left upside down...

'The blood is getting to my head... Well, Nothing ventured, Nothing gained, right Gordon?' Aroma

[Aroma]

Having been able to successfully cause her friend to actually budge upon being punched, much less be turned literally on his head. After years of him not even moving an inch with a full force punch, it was nice to see some kind of progress. Despite her growing collection of destroyed punching bags getting to her, she wouldn't say she was outright... Angry about it. It did mean progress after all.

Right...?

Aroma shook her head, casting aside any self doubt as best as she could. Freaking out? Breathe it out, as an elderly warrior with a pompadour had once said to her at one point in the past. Of course, it didn't always work. But it was nice to have a mantra.

... 

Whatever that meant. Regardless, it worked enough for her to follow instructions. As she gently placed down Atlas's chair, and opened the window. Letting out a sigh, Aroma clenched her fists tightly, and grit her teeth. Breathing in, unfurrowing her brow, and relaxed her shoulders. Before letting out a yell of frustration at herself and going to grab Atlas, aiming on tossing him out of the window and punching him to the ground to start their extended training.

---

Atlas Steele

[Atlas Steele]

Sitting upside down on the ground while being lifted up by Aroma, as she had seemingly calmed down after that shout of frustration, he would bring his eyes downwards, which would be upwards for everybody in the normal positioning.
Quite a fascinating aspect to be able to look down and be able to see... Not her face.

"Aroma, Are you calm?" Atlas would ask, making sure as he would take a deep breath upon feeling his body being aimed straight, as if he was an arrow before leaving the window, waving his house goodbye with a deadpan look as he was quite frustrated.

"Woaaaah, My house looks like it is sliding away from m-" Before his head would be struck into the ground, dragging dirt and grass out of the confines of the soil itself as he would continue his momentum for a bit before flipping his entire body into a standing position.
With the grace that didn't belong to a lumbering giant, Atlas would keep the momentum of the throw up far enough to be able to get out of any attack's way for a short moment before then turning around.

"Okay, there is no reason for you to start off strong, remember that lady." He would speak, shaking his finger before showing the minimum damage he had obtained, before then clicking his tongue. "You are going to make this a tough one today aren't you?" As he would drop his body in a posture that was easily visible where his center of gravity had dropped almost to the ground.

Legs spread wide, his hands kept up in front of his body, he was preparing himself for when Aroma would have another claim of annoyance before doing her ideals.

"Aroma, If i am able to make you eat dirt, you owe me a trip to the petting zoo and a reward, Alrighty?"

Aroma

[Aroma]

Landing a short distance away from Atlas, Aroma stood up straight and rotated her shoulders before cracking her neck from left to right in order to limber up. "There was some blowback on that last punch." She grumbled, clenching her fists to crack her fingers as well.

The woman moved over to her friend slowly, walking as she listened to his words. They often confused and aggravated her, why wouldn't someone start strong? Surely it was better to wipe someone out before they wore you down. "Starting strong or not, the fact that you're scraped..." She said, letting out a grin as she got closer and slamming her open palms onto his shoulders, clamping down on them and gripping tightly.

"Means I'm getting better..." She grinned, taking steps forward to try and push Atlas back. Trying to turn this initially presumed fist fight into a grapple.

---

Atlas Steele

[Atlas Steele]

As Atlas felt the hands clamp onto his shoulders, he flinched a little when she lost eye contact, remembering that he had to remain strong to be able to teach her in the place of her old master.
Having gone from the unbeatable wall in his hometown to having people continuously flinch and damage his body, the damage was starting to pile on as he would slowly take a deep breath before raising his hands upwards in a boxing stance while showing a cheeky smile to the opponent at this point.

Having forgotten that the person before himself was known as Aroma, having forgotten that this person was a friend, He had challenged her in the most primal desire of any wrestler, not as a friend out of the ring but as a mere simple man that wanted to rest his knuckles in the face of the opponent as he would upon assuming a boxing position swing his arms outwards to overpower her grip and force her to separate.

Possibly to even wind her before then drawing his body back, his lungs gathering all the air that he could before placing his fist down at his own hip, having pulled his hand backwards before lunging it forwards to imitate a blow to the face.
One that he would infuse with the killing intent of a man that had been fighting for his family before stepping forwards and changing his positioning entirely.

His entire plan could be faulted if the opponent was a calm fighter if they were capable of stepping back and keeping their own pace with a relaxed attitude.
But this wasn't that woman that was wrestling him and fighting him at this position, Atlas knew this and he was going to take advantage of this.

His opened palm that was once a faked blow to the face turning into a grappling motion that along with the intended killing intent would hopefully allow him to grab her by the face as she steps back.
Lift her straight up into the air and then slam the back of her head into the pavement for a devastating attack against her.

---

Aroma

[Aroma]

"What the fuc-!?" Cried Aroma, her voice forced to muffle due to her friend's massively mighty meaty mitt grabbing her by the face. In the second it took for her to realize that she hadn't in fact suddenly gone blind and that it was in fact Atlas's hand, she found herself leaving the ground as a result of his counter attack.

"Pff, you actually got to hurt me." She spoke, grinning beneath his hand. "But it's not good enough...!" Continued Aroma, being flung down by the muscular man as she put her own counter to his counter into action. Angling her stomach downwards with his movement, and swinging her tree trunk-like legs into his neck from both sides by the shins. Hooking herself on to him and swivelling her centre of gravity off balance. Using her weight to knock Atlas off of his feet, and ultimately slam him into the earth by the neck to free herself.

---

Atlas Steele sorry it took a while!

[Atlas Steele]

As Atlas was slammed into the ground, looking blankly at the sky with his entire world stopped for a moment, he would feel the body slip further before he was left letting out a violent cry, lifting his arms upwards, and if he wasn't stopped, catching Aroma in his arms along with a pained grunt as he promptly spoke.

"We are taking a break from the fight." His tone was flustered, cold, and at the same time... As if he was hiding something?
With Atlas his mind filled with certain thoughts, he would grow frustrated before then nodding towards Aroma.

"Well, I consider this a fight that I have lost then, Do you wish to go somewhere, or do you wish to make me follow a command of yours?" As he had given the free reign to the girl he had been battling with mere moments before.
Yet, Why was he slightly hunched forwards?

---

Aroma

[Aroma]

"What the fuck...?" Grumbled Aroma, bursting out of his grasp and standing over him. Seeming even larger due to his hunched over position. "You finished so quickly... Pff, that's just disappointing..." She scoffed, putting a hand on her hip as she frowned down at him disapprovingly.

Aroma didn't understand, years ago they could easily beat each other down throughout the night. And now he was tapping out before they even got started! What happened to him...? He couldn't be getting too old, because if he was, then...

Right...?

Letting out an annoyed cry, Aroma moved in and forced her friend into a headlock. As things weighed heavy on his mind, she took this time to try and force answers out of him. "The fuck are you tapping out so early for!?" She yelled, squeezing him close and tightly. "I was just getting started!" Continued Aroma, weighing down on his head further.

"Why are you bending over too...? Come on! ANSWER ME!"

---

Atlas Steele

[Atlas Steele]

"Okay! Okay!" Atlas spoke, wanting to answer her before he was left frozen, shocked, burned, everything in the entire alphabet of damage was going through his body as he would slowly wince with a soft and pained tone before using all of his own strength to throw her off him!

"I am getting old, okay?!" He proclaimed, using it as an excuse while he could before trying to turn away and go inside, attempting to leave her with this devastating information...!

Although, While Atlas was doing this, something seemed wrong, why was he not having any hip or leg issues...? He was merely hunched over and trying to avoid a battle...?!

[Aroma]

Shocked by the supposed revelation of Atlas's admittance of his age, Aroma clenched her fists and looked down. Trembling with rage as she looked at him move inside. Wait a minute... Aroma looked closer at her friend, slowly walking behind him. He wasn't limping, he wasn't holding his hip... All of the tell tale signs of being old, and he displayed none of them...?

Aroma's walk turned into a jog, then into a run, then a full speed sprint as she came to realize that clearly her friend was, for whatever reason, pretending to be hurt in order to get out of training!

"You fucking LIAR!" Roared Aroma, leaping behind him with her arm outstretched. Colliding with the back of Atlas's head and pulling him down to the earth with a solid lariat manoeuvre.

---

Atlas Steele

[Atlas Steele]

"Wait, Liar?" Atlas would state before turning around and getting struck in the neck as his entire body would flip in the air as his eyes grew hazy, tears escaping his eyes as he also had a little of spittle escape from the impact, everything starting to fade for him before realizing what was happening.

Able to avoid his face from slamming into the tiled and paved road coming up to his own home that he shared, he would land sloppily on his knees as a rock would slip away for a moment...

"Gh?!" As a soft cry escaped his mouth as a loud crack was heard as Atlas laid flat on the ground, having slammed his entire weight down on his own body, it would remain a mystery what said crack as Atlas quietly weeped.
A puddle of tears growing underneath his face and spreading past the hiding cover of his face buried in the dirt.

[Aroma]

"Of course you're a liar! Don't play dumb!" Shouted Aroma, getting back up once again and standing up. Casting a shadow over Atlas as she put her hands on her hips. "You're not old! Because if you're old, then so am I!" She cried, preparing to go on a massive tirade about the topic. Only to stop once she realized that the man who was usually so emotionally strong was crying as a result of her actions, which upon closer inspection...

"Fuck, you're hurt pretty bad..." She muttered, helping Atlas to his feet with his left arm slung over her shoulder. Leading him inside to rest. "I'll uh... get some ice to put on... "that"." She said, taking him to the nearby couch first so he could lay down and rest his no doubt aching body.

---

Atlas Steele

[Atlas Steele]

Being swung over her shoulder with his left arm, Atlas would take deep breaths before trying to stop his sobbing as he would raise a thumb in his pained appearance before being helped inside.

"Please do grab enough ice to fit on it." He commented, making a last cocky comment before starting to lose consciousness as a giant, lumbering mass of stupidity that was too busy being pure.

With the sun having rosen rather high, it seemed that today would soon have to end if Aroma wanted to give Atlas enough rest to be able to make them dinner...

Unless she would try to force Atlas awake, once again for another event to happen again?

[Aroma]

Scoffing at Atlas's final remark, Aroma walked out of the room to leave him to his own devices. As much as she hated to admit it, Atlas was actually slowing down some. She didn't want to believe it was due to age, but... Maybe it was. They were both in their fifties after all. Shaking her head slowly as she grabbed a bag of ice, she was initially going to slam it down onto the wounded area. But thought differently at the last moment, gently placing the ice pack down on Atlas's groin area, and moving his hand onto the pack to keep it compressed.

"Alright, fine... You can take a break. For now..." She sighed, leaving him to rest and heading back up to her room to do the same, not wanting to risk anything herself after seeing Atlas be put through "that".

---

Fin.