Settle the Score

[Grayon Brand]

((OOC: Atticus Only Please))

He was tired of waiting... he had waited to long.

Grayon looked at his watch... it was 9:32 P.M. He was late. But then, of course, Grayon was always punctual. He had arrived right on the dot at the appointed place.

Grayon looked around to get a feel for the place he was at. This was large open area, with rolling hills. Ther wasn't much around, as he had wanted, and the nearest place was a water resevior a few miles away. They had a nice view of the interstate, and the houses beyond it, along with the few scatter houses in the opposite direction.

But this hilltop was fairly flat, very few shrubs or trees, and on a night like this... very well lit. The moon was full, and Grayon's blood was running hard. He calmed himself as well as he could and waited. The scuffle in the classroom was just the beginning... they would finish it here.

Grayon had decided that the young boy hadn't learned his lesson before, and had senthim an "invitation". Grayon and the boy would fight... and finish their battle. They would settle their score... right here.

[Atticus Wagner]

No show? Not exactly. The "invitation" hadn't gotten to Atticus in any proper fashion. He had been skateing through the town all day, getting a feel for the local zone. The farthest thing from his mind was fighting, and the thing that was in his head was merely skateing. So it was more than a surprise when his excursion brought him accross the path of one of the idiots from school. More specifically, it was the boy who had the nerve to take the board. He would suffer. Atticus brought his board to a stop, doing the old "stomp on the lip" trick to bounce the board into his hand. Sliding the board into it's proper resting place, the back of his backpack, Atticus glared at the bastard.

Taking a look around, he saw the empty area, and the few cement walkways coming through the wide open area. It was odd how Long Beach could have such a open area left undeveloped. Strange, really. But that would also mean there would be no interferece. The beatdown was going to be good.

"Well, I guess I'm lucky that I found you out here. I get some payback for Psych class. Oh! And by the way, no, Faust didn't do much to me at all. He can bite, but he has a shock collar. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to thrash you for taking my board!" Atticus got into a classic boxer stance, the base for most of his moves. Then again, he was sure that everyone knew he used every advantage he had.

[Grayon Brand]

Well well... he finally showed up.

Grayon looked at his watch again as he turned towards the pompus asshole from his Psych class.

"9:35... You're late. By five minutes. I was about to declare you a 'wuss-out'. But I am impressed you came here for a proper fight. Oh, and don't worry... that slab of wood won't be of much use to you when your leg joints have been dislocated."

Grayon watched the young man assume a traditional boxing stance, so typical. Grayon merely put his hands behind his back, one hand lying over the other, easily able to be moved to attack or defend. Plus, this gave him the best chance of suprise, and Grayon did like to catch people off guard.

"Shall we get this under way?"

[Atticus Wagner]

"Late? What are you talking about? What is this, some sort of date? Sorry, but I don't swing that way..." Atticus laughed defiantly, if was clear he hadn't gotten an invitation. It was pure luck that they happened to be there about to fight. Or perhaps, it was destiny that they were to engage in firece battle. A war between souls, of the highest order. No, it couldn't have been that, after all, the motive for the fight was a skateboard of all things. Not exactly something that would ever provoke a glorious battle. Just another sad beatdown and another hospitalized kid.

"And dislocation is nothing... I can do that on my own! A minute later, I'd be back on my board. So let's quit the chatter and get to the brawl, b*tch!" Atticus grinned, rushing forward for the idiot. Of course, with his hands behind the back, the guy was obviously looking to surprise. Obviousness and surprise weren't exactly compatable. It would be an easy enough first move, just to see if this kid had skills, or if his performance was all just a show. And Atticus knew a false showing when he saw one.

First move was a simple lunging right palm, aimed right for the metting point between the two halves of the ribcage. Of course, by then, the guy would have his hands coming up to block. That was exactly why he'd pull back at the last second, and plant the same hand to the ground. It would brace him while his left leg dropped a full sweep towards the idiot's knees, which would make all of the attention be focused down there. Whether or not he managed to block was no matter. The next strike was to plant his left foot after the sweep, and rotate his whole body to make his right foot sweep upwards into the guy's head, heel first. Sure, he wore skater shoes, but a heel was a heel, and they were good for kicking ass.

If the guy managed to deal with all that accordingly, it would be quite interesting to see what else would happen.

[Grayon Brand]

Grayon watched as the boy rushed forward, headstrong and sure of himself. As the boy went to strike, Grayon launched himself up and over the boy, rolling in mid air to make the landing easier. As he landed, Grayon turned around to watch as the boy finished a sweep upwards, where his head would have been.

"I must have gotten right over that... You make everything so predictable though. Who would start with a basic attack? Only amateurs would do that... you amateur."

Grayon still had his hands behind his back, not wanting to use them until necessary. This boy seemed capable, but seemed to think very... linear-ly. Grayon would break him of that thought pattern... He readied himself for another strike.

[Atticus Wagner]

"Basic attacks are the easiest and quickest to use, after all, you got out of the way rather quickly, didn't you? But you're saying that to make an effective opening, you have to do something overly complex? And that a basic opening is downright stupid? Boy, you have got a lot to learn about fighting. It's not about being some fancy-ass performer. It's about two people, and their fists." Atticus gared at the kid. He was losing any respect he could have possibly had for this guy, who felt himself so superior as to question a fighting style that he didn't even know. "So I suggest you get right to it, and actually fight!" Atticus demanded of his prey, fully willing to show the guy the error of his ways.

Atticus dropped his hands into his pockets, hunching over slightly. His thumbs were hooked on the outside of his pants pockets. They were easy to draw out if needed, but it wouldn't be necessary this time. This guy was a joke, Atticus could tell from just that first move. The guy was all to willing to retreat, so all Atticus had to do was show the guy that he truly was no match for the purplr and blonde haired punk. "Or are you just going to stand there looking all prim and proper. I thought you wanted this fight, so get to it already. It'll all be over soon, I guess, but I have a busy life, and I don't want you taking up too much of my precious time."

[Grayon Brand]

Now grayon was never one to make a move first... but this boy had already thrown the first punch. Grayon scoffed at the boy's insolence, thinking of what Grayon would describe as a "Warrior's Code".

"Hmm... two men and their fists... two brutes needlessly smashing each other to pulps for what? Because one offended the other? Because one had an urge to fight? What meaning is that? If they desire power, strength and fighting ability is not the only way. And as for me challenging you, the main reason I did was neither to get back at you for your insolence, or even to finish what the teacher started. I merely wanted to test the skills of some of the schools students."

Grayon walked slowly towards the boy, his heands behind his back, non-threatheningly. When he got close enough, he leaned forward and looked straight into the boy's eyes with his own emotionless orbs.

"You are the one that said he would get 'payback'. I merely wanted to see how well some of the students fought... their power, so to say. Or at least their power in a certain field. So, we have come to a crossroads. I have not gotten the best answer I can, and you have not gotten your payback. What do you say we just finish this now. You give me your best shot. I am three inches from you, you would hardly miss. But know one thing... I will not retreat if you strike again."

Grayon leaned back, out of the boy's face, but still within striking distance. Yes, he was giving him a perfect shot... But Grayon knew what he was doing.

[Atticus Wagner]

"Your funeral." Three inches. Less than four hundredths of a second. That's all the time three inches could buy this guy. What he had to depend on was that Atticus would show his hand before he attacked. Only one problem with that assumption, Atticus wouldn't show his hand, or even his feet. Atticus launched a full on forehead-to-nose headbutt. Okay, primitive, unrefined, whatever. But, it served it's purpose. It was a quick attack with no predictability what so ever, especially since people these days were worried about their faces getting messed up. Not only that, the headbutt was good enough to cause tears to well up in the eyes, as a body's natural response to an impact there.

And with such blurred vision, it would be much harder to see the roundhouse knee coming in to collide with Grayson's left knee. It would impact from the side, causing either a break in the joint, or making Grayson kneel. If the joint broke, or if he knelt over, Grayson would have another knee come up right into his face, further aiming to damage the nose. One of his current tactics was to constantly target one point of the body, in order to damage it greatly, and impair the opponent's ability to fight. This was no exception. The target was the nose, a sensitive, and easily damaged area of the body. A strong blow could break it and cause it to bleed rather well, calling for immediate medical attention.

[Grayon Brand]

The boy showed no hand... at such a short distance, just about any attack would have some sort of give away, except for one, unless the boy planned to do no damage.

Then it came, and Grayon was ready... You see his first fight ended in a series of back and forth headbutts, and Grayon had guessed that the man would try it since he was so close, either that or back him up to counter, but that would have to be given away. Grayon lowered his head just a bit, so that the boy's headbutt connected with his own forehead. It hurt, and the blood running down Grayon's forehead said so. However, if you were just to look at Grayon's eyes and expression, would never have guessed. As the knee came around, Grayon turned his knee out and bent it so that the kneecaps connected. This boy was going for vital spots, but Grayon would only let him feel his own attacks.

And more... Grayon grabbed ahold of the boy's shoulder while pulling back his opposite arm. The grab was merely to get his attention. As soon as Grayon had his arm back, he would then throw it forward as hard as he could, straight into the boy's sternum.

It would be hard to dodge, and would knock the wind out of him, if it hit.

The boy does have potential, but he is misguided... Sad.

[Atticus Wagner]

Damn, the guy had a few counter techniques. No matter. If anyone could play the counter this game, it was Atticus. He absolutely lived screw everything up. People needed to learn to be more flexible in their approach. As the head-to-head collision parted, he could feel the use of one knee to block his own. In the collision, Atticus had the advantage. His knee could dig in whereas Grayson's would have to withstand. He'd probably have a stiff knee after that move. And Atticus wasn't at all oblivious to the blood splattering on his forhead either. He could tell it wasn't his own. Why? He was a boarder, he'd taken a lot of shots to the head, and various other places of the body. He knew he could take that impact.

And seeing the arm reel back for an attack was more than obvious. He was probably trying to compensate for being so close. As the punch came in, Atticus pivoted the his body, using the held shoulder as his pivot point. Then his leg swept out one more time, going for the back of the kneecaps one more time, just as the arm wiffed past his chest. With the guy stuck in a kneel, he could send the other knee into the ribcage rather easily, which would likely become a takedown from the forces involved. Without his hands though, ground attacks would be pretty hard. If he was force down somehow, he would have to use them to fight.

[Grayon Brand]

Grayon felt the boy turn to dodge his attack, and followed through to avoid a counter. But he didn't move far enough, as he saw a blur of motion out of his peripheral vision. Grayon turned his knee again to feel the knees connect. However, this time it felt as if the boy didn't put force into the attack, as if he was attacking with his foot instead of his knee as before.

Grayon quickly swept his extended right arm behind the boy and pulled it in, not allowing the boy to move backwards. Grayon let go of the boy's shoulder and quickly stuck him in the sternum with the first joints in his left fingers past his knuckles. That would cause a sharp pain to distract him long enough for Grayon to pull back the arm a bit to strike him in the stomach right under his diaphragm. Grayon hoped that would knock the wind out of the boy enough to allow him to then pull back his arm to throw a left hook into the boy's kidney.

If the boy did duck, Grayon would throw a quick left knee forward, most likely stopping the boy's duck, and throwing him onto the ground. If the boy tried to move out of the grasp to his right, Grayon's left, Grayon would ball his right hand and swing the bent arm, turning his body to get more power. This would most likely connect with the boy's spine, and would be hard to see coming.

((OOC: Added the ten XP. Old stats were:
Str: 15 - Dex: 21 - Con: 11 - Int: 20 - Wis: 18 - Cha: 6))

[Atticus Wagner]

Atticus' vision blurred for a moment as the events passed by. Clearly, Atticus couldn't keep up his self-imposed handicap for long before he'd lose control. So about when the knuckles rapped into Atticus' sternum, Atticus got his hands out of his pockets. The knuckle shot was annoying, but wouldn't matter, as Atticus drove his whole body into Grayson. It was a moment of downright fury as Atticus shoulder tackled Grayson when his arms was all the way back for another blow. Atticus had his head tucked in towards his body as all fo his weight went into tipping Grayson over. Sure, Grayson was probably stronger, but with all of Grayson's footwork to deal with Atticus' knee strikes, he had to be off balance just enough.

As all of the wieght was brought into Grayson, Atticus' left knee shot off the ground, aiming to spike the kneecap right into Grayson's ribcage. Impacting the lower most rib had a good possibility of a break, or at least imparing the guy's ability to stand straight. When that one landed, he'd bring his knee up again for another strike, aiming for multiple, repetitive strikes to the same area. It was a reckless move, and Atticus was a reckless guy. A perfect fit when it came right down to it.

[Grayon Brand]

Forward? Was the man mad? Grayon felt the man ran his wieght into him, knocking a slight amount of air from him, but also left his back wide open, due to ducking his head.

As the boy came forward, Grayon was in the middle of throwing forward the punch aimed for below the boy's diaphragm, and felt it curve along the boy's bent lower ribcage. However, this worked perfectly for Grayon. He smiled as he quickly pulled his right arm around and slammed it down suddenly right into the boy's spine. That would have an effect. Grayon straightened his boy out and put his right side forward. Any attack the boy might try at this point would have a hard time hitting, since he would habve to beat Grayon's strike. And even if the boy did manage to hit him, it's power would be greatly decreased...

[Atticus Wagner]

((OOC: Hooray for details... I never put my backpack down...))

Atticus let out what seemed to be a stifled cry of pain as he gritted his teeth through the pain from an attack to his spine. It wasn't so bad as Grayson would want though. There was a backpack in the way of most of the impact. It was a clumsy attack on his part, but it did have quite some force. And now he was going to pay. When the strike had barely hit, Atticus flexed his whole body back, using his lower center of gravity. And since Grayson had been focusing on keeping from falling back, he was ripe to be pulled the opposite direction. With a battlecry all his own, Atticus felt Grayson's body lifting off the ground.

The body would go right over Atticus' arching back, making Grayson land head first into the ground. Not exactly sure if it was dirt or cement that would be the landing pad, Atticus still attacked. Strongarm tactics weren't something people saw from peple that looked like Atticus, so Grayson would probably have a good deal of surprise on his face right then. If not, it didn't matter, his head was going to slam down with all the force Atticus could gather.

[Grayon Brand]

((OOC: I thought so, but I have a rather awful plan... >:]))

Grayon felt his body being lifted as he began to try to accomodate for the flip... by flipping faster. Grayon found himself halfway over the boy's back, and grabbed for the boy's backpack, since he was about halfway through his flip. As Grayon finished the flip, he felt a hard bump as he landed on the gound on his butt. However, he still had ahold of the boy's backpack, which was behind him at the point. Grayon drew the pack up and over his head, ducking down to avoid being him. He did this as quickly as he could to get the boy over his head with little resistance, and was pleased when he felt the boy rise from the ground a bit...

However, Grayon would let his hands slide from his holds on the pack as the boy came over his head, resulting in a throw... however, Grayon's hands caught on soemthing that he had most likely hurt earlier with his spinal attack... the skateboard. And now the force of Grayon's suddenyl catching the board broke it in two. Satisfaction crossed Grayon's face.

"Well... I'm glad to have at least broken that annoying piece of wood..."

Grayon stood after he threw the boy, and readied himself for a counter.