Who's the Monster, Who's the Beast? [PG-13, NDE]

[Caedir din Sahra]

Participants: Caedir din Sahra, Pasmar Vinnom
World: Soul Society
Thread Setting: Non Death Enabled
Rating: PG13
Location:

This battle takes place on the outskirts of Soul Society, within one of the forests outside of District 46. The area is perfect for a snake, or in this case, a Snake-like Hollow, to maneuver freely, while providing plenty of treeline cover and places to move around for those who are adept at moving through the trees. There are a few open clearings, but they are few and far between.

Special Conditions:

None.

Circumstances:

The premise of this battle is the simplest of all: chance. Caedir, being uncomfortable around humans still and adapting to his new life in the Rukongai, often retreats to the forests to get away from the noise, the confusion, and the discrimination of being different. During his trek in the woods, he encounters a Hollow, one of the few that somehow manage to find their way into Soul Society. As the creature attacks him, Caedir is forced to the flight-or-fight decision... and his opponent would determine which is possible.

[Caedir din Sahra]

Quiet...

Caedir let out a soft sigh of relief as he settled atop a branch thick enough to bear his weight, swinging himself upon the wooden extension of the tree behind him and resting with his back to the trunk. The feline Beast-Clan member felt right at home among the trees in the forest; after all, he had spent the first two years of his “life” there, the life after... well, suffice to say it was the first two years that he personally recognized as his life. He didn't want to think of the years before, the fifteen that marked a decidedly different existence. Too much thought on the matter always caused the cheetah to shiver if he tried to dwell on it, something about it feeling unnatural and strange, even if he didn't necessarily understand why. All that Caedir knew was that his instincts told him something about it was wrong, and he knew to trust his instincts more than anything else.

It was soothing to be among the trees and wilderness though, as opposed to being among the humans in the Rukongai district where he lived. Though he felt his proper place was among the humans, Caedir always felt uncomfortable and self-conscious under their stares of distrust. The looks he got made him feel as though he was constantly being stared down at, made him feel like he was something lesser, something unimportant and unwanted. It didn't stop the Beast-Clan member from trying his hardest to fit in, to the point he even had a job that he used to rent out a small room for himself. It was a simple affair, with a bed to sleep on and a small table for him to sit at and eat—though why humans required a table, he never knew; it was just as easy to eat with your hands wherever you were at the time—but it was at least home. Still, “home” never felt less like home with the way most humans treated him, and as a result, Caedir often retreated to the forests nearby in order to get away from it all.

Today was one such day; the cheetah had finished his mail route for the day, running his way through districts 41-46 of the Rukongai and delivering letters and packages as he had been directed. Though his level of reading was far underdeveloped compared to humans around his age of thirty-five years, Caedir had been shown how to recognize numbers and how to match up addresses with other written notices in order to find the proper recipient. Sometimes he still made mistakes and packages ended up with the wrong people, but for the most part his success rate wasn't too bad. Of course, being an anthropomorphic animal, the Beast-Clan member also had doors slammed shut in his face as often as he was thanked, if not more often, but he took it in the best humor he could, patiently leaving packages or mail on the doorstep if he could not speak with the recipients themselves and then leaving.

So after finishing his usual route of mail, Caedir had decided to take a day off from the Rukongai districts, instead finding his way to the forests where he had grown up, stalking through the trees. The feline felt a rumbling in his stomach, reminding him that he hadn't eaten yet that day. Most of his money went to paying for the room he rented—little did he know he was being overcharged, but he had no way of judging that—and so the feline often got by with small meals or hunted his own food, generally fishing from a river that ran not too far from the edge of District 46. That same river ran its way through most of the forest, and in fact had been one of Caedir's main sources of food even when he had lived out in the wilderness. Some things didn't change, thankfully, and with familiarity came comfort, something the cheetah had too little of.

Rubbing at his stomach, the Beast-Clan considered that a little fishing might be in order soon...

SPOILER: Click to show

Stats (Rank 1 Soldier)

Strength – [75] (75) Points

Speed – [100 x 1.5] (150) Points

Spiritual Pressure - [50] (50) Points

Reiatsu Strength – [50 x 0.7] (35) Points

Light Aura – 100 Points

Dark Aura - 0 Points

Instinct – [100] (100) Points

Senses - [100] (100) Points

Energy sensory – [25] (25) Points

Healing Expertise – [0] (0) Points


Total SP: 500 Points

SPOILER: Click to show

Skills (6/15 Used)

• [Acrobatics] 1
  
  
• [Martial Arts: Hakuda] 1
  
  
• [Stealth] 1
  
  
• [Battle Focus] 1
  
  
• [Learning] 1
  
  
• [Damage Recovery] 1

[Pasmar Vinnom]

((Purple is talk, italic is thought and Red is prey's voice))





Meanwhile, deep in the forest, away from any curious eyes laid Pasmar. His eyes, if anyone could consider these empty sockets as eyes, seems fixed in front of him, as he hid behind a big rock in a crawling position, effectively concealing his big and troublesome size. At least I can't get bigger he thought to himself foolishly, as he didn't know that he would get bigger in the next phase. He quickly discarded the thought, as soon as he started, concentrating his thoughts to what he was peering at, with his elongated arms bent forward, almost reaching the ground.

That "what" was a human, or rather a Rukoguy as Pasmar learned to name them from the previous conversations he had heard of. Anyway, that Rukoguy was casually resting in the open glade that unfolded before Pasmar, approximately a size of a basket stadium, lying on a big rock with his gaze ,probably, peering the sky with anticipation, as if it was about to be torn apart and reveal some kind of divine being. But little did he knew that a being dwelled a few metres behind him, it was not so divine.

Pasmar waited for the right moment. Everything was set and ready. The victim laid on a rock, defenceless, showing his back at Pasmar, just ten or nine meters in front of Pasmar. Pasmar aimed for everything to be perfect; he would glide on the ground as quietly but also fast as he could, grab the victim leg, protruding from the rock and at the same time, bite off his head, without him uttering a single word. The task was easy; the prey was not aware of his presence, and he seemed to have a certain age, as opposed to Pasmar who was capable and young(Do hollows fall in the terms of other races in such things?).

Everything was perfect but not everything; his damn lower body made very much voice and the victim could easily hear him and run away. Though he could eventually catch up to him, Pasmar nonetheless, knew that the possibilities were infinite and he could as well jump into a Shinigami patrol and get slain like the Hollow, some friends of his, he has seen so far. I will not fall without accomplishing anything he thought to himself in a calm demeanor The shinigami may as well as go-

A sudden gale of air.

Pasmar didn't think it much. He moved out of his position and glided towards his prey, as long as the gale lasted. His thoughts were running in a similar wavelength as his body.8 meters...7 meters...6 meters..5 meters...4 meters...3 meters... The gale stopped. The Rukoguy turned behind him to find the source of this glinding sound on the grass, expecting it to be a snake. A big one it was.

"AAAAARGH" the man shouted and tried to make an attempt to stand up. Pasmar launched himself to him, crushing his chest with his left hand, which stopped his irksome yelling, and with his left again he grabbed his broken chest and bitted off his head. After that, he throw the rest of the body in and swallowed it. He breathed a sigh of relief and said with a honest but apathetic tone "So much strain for so little preys..may his soul rest forever.". In my belly he jokingly thought as his hunger was sated..for now.

He then moved forward to another of his daily routine subjects; erasing evidence. He was not quite ready yet to alarm the local Rukoguys that a hollow was admist them, so he tried not to let any that may signify his presence. This time though he did quite the mess; in his hunger his spilled blood everywhere, on the rock, the grass and the most concerning part was that the man's scream had woken up any life within 3 miles. Luckily, that was wild life, so there was not any chance of any Rukoguy or even worse Shinigami showing around.

As he thought all these, he slid himself towards the rock and began to think ways of cleaning it.

SPOILER: Click to show

Stats

Strength - [50]

Speed - [100]

Spiritual Pressure - [90] (63)

Reiatsu Strength - [100] (150)

Light Aura - [45]

Dark Aura - [55]

Instinct - [75]

Senses - [50]

Energy sensory - [35]

Healing Expertise - [0]

Total SP: 500

Skills

[Calm Mind] {1}

[Analyzing] {1}

[Memory] {1}

[Martial Arts:Rey Cobra Menaje] {1}

[Battle Analysis] {1}

[Battle Focus]{1}

[Battle Skill:Polearms] {1}

[Caedir din Sahra]

The rustling of leaves below and the scent of fear rose up as Caedir stirred from his position, napping above the treetops. The cheetah's nose twitched slightly as he peered over the edge of the branch, wondering what was causing such a noise below. His tree wasn't too far from a nearby clearing, though the Beast-Clan member was certainly well-hidden in the leaves and thick boughs of his current perch quiet well, and it was from that clearing that the sensations came. All too soon, they were complimented and accentuated by a loud, human scream that rose from the trees. This far out, it would have been left unheard by the average person... but Caedir was far from average, and chance had favored his presence, causing him to be nearby to take in the sounds of distress. They weren't far, either, maybe a hundred feet or so.

But did he react to the call of distress? Caedir found himself considering what to do. Surely, it was none of his business what happened to humans, given their treatment of him. Besides, survival of the fittest did dictate that those who were strong enough to live would do so, while those who were not would die. What right did Caedir have to interfere with the natural cycle? Yet at the same time, it would be 'right,' in the human sense, to save the man's life if at all possible. Plus, it would get him points with other humans, for a non-human to “selflessly” protect the life of one not of their kind. Of course, that felt wrong, too; though he hadn't developed the same system of sophisticated morality that humans had, Caedir at least had some conscience; he couldn't allow himself to think so coldly of another life, as if it was nothing more than a bargaining chip. No, if he was going to act or not, it would be based on whether he let nature take its course or if he decided to interfere.

Curiosity won out over practicality, and Caedir slunk down from his treetop perch, landing lightly on his feet at the base of the trunk. Creeping through the woods with a practiced ease, his feet avoiding dried leaves and twigs while his ears remained perked up, keeping alert for any sounds. Besides the normal echoes of birds and other wildlife startled by the scream from before, there was also a dry hissing sound, like something sliding against the dirt and stone. Caedir recognized the rasp of scales, but the scale of it—pun unintended—was far larger than any normal snake he had ever seen, and he had seen some large ones out in the wilderness. They didn't make very good food, as snake meat tasted rather... bland, for lack of better words, but Caedir had grown to recognize the sounds after getting bitten by a poisonous one and spending a good week laid up.

Approaching the clearing, the cheetah quietly slipped behind a tree as his eyes caught sight of an enormous, half-serpent creature that was prowling about the clearing, seemingly... cleaning something up? Red stains suggested blood, and the mess splattered across the rock as well as the lack of corpse suggested that the snake-thing had finished its meal. The creature was unfamiliar to Caedir, but he had seen things like it before. Creatures with faces hidden behind bone-white masks, they were incredibly rare, yet they were also incredibly deadly. The cheetah had seen these mask-creatures slaughter humans before, and seemingly with ease; they were giant monsters, consuming any living being that got in their way. They were voracious predators, always devouring anything they could find.

But then again, were they really so different from the animals, in their own fashion? They hunted and ate to survive. The difference was in their attitude, at the joy they took in killing. Sure, Caedir could respect a healthy exhilaration when it came to the chase and capture of prey, because there was nothing like racing something down, pushing yourself to the limit. But the mask-creatures just took joy in killing, in the death. They tore things apart, reveled in the extinguishing of life. It was almost as though feeding was a second priority, a mere afterthought once the carnage was complete. It was why Caedir avoided them at all costs, hiding in the shadows and the trees, knowing that if he was not careful, he would go from predator to prey in a heartbeat.

After confirming the sight, Caedir started to retreat slowly, stepping back through the trees while keeping his eyes on the snakelike mask-creature. However, in doing so he didn't watch his steps, and his paw caught on a semi-thick dry branch, causing it to break with a loud crack that echoed almost like gunfire. He froze reflexively, hoping that the browns and grays of the forest around him would mask his appearance somewhat, but he didn't get his hopes up. Still, instinct dictated stillness; fleeing would only incite the predatory mask-creature to chase him down, and who knew how fast it was? Caedir was fast, but he didn't want to stake his life on it unless he had to.

[Pasmar Vinnom]

That sound..that sound was enough to set him in an alarming state. His mind racing, his thoughts as well. For a second he stood still, frozen in his position, his whole body feeling tight from head to tail, as if something deep in him took control for his body at once and then dictated it to do so. In that brief second he pushed away that 'force' and continued to casually cleaning the blood in the same relaxed manner as he did before, like someone who suddenly 'blacks out' for a moment but then immediately reverts back to reality. For anyone who was looking at him, he would seem unfazed by the sudden interruption. For anyone though who was focused only on the exterior..

His mind certainly did not follow its body's seemingly unaware stance of surroundings. A reiatsu permeated behind him. He was certain of that. His energy sensory was perfect for sensing anything within 25 metres of him, but this was as far as it went. Even more, he could feel the reiatsu's nature if it was close to him. And that was exactly the tricky part; this reiatsu didn't felt elegant, controlled like a Shinigami's or pure and unrefined like one of a Plus. This one...it felt wild and feral, but at the same time it felt..humane. A beast..?Or rather a humanoid beast? a little voice said inside in his head, in a curious but at the same time careful tone.

He dragged his humongous body towards a big boulder, enough to cover 3 big-sized pizzas, the sound of his tail sliding through the grassy surface piercing the air. As soon as he reached he lifted it and then threw it on the blood-splattered ground with a loud thump, making the earth around it shake a little. While all this was happening, his mind though was entirely focused on the previous interruption, working ways to deal with it effectively...and quickly. "Blood on ground, covered.." he marked to himself as he exhaled, like someone who has returned from a big and tiring day of work. Should I scare it away the little voice rose once again inside of him. He quickly perished the thought. Whatever was behind him was not a beast, if it was and his sensing skill was just messing with him, it would have just left. But that beast or animal or whatever it was, just stayed there. Big beasts normally do that, a fact which put Pasmar on dismay, even more the fact that this beast had a reiatsu belonging to a human.

((The next two paragraph are purely optional to read xD))
He formed an imaginary council inside his head, made in its entirety of Pasmars. Gentlemen, we are dealing here with a case unlike any we have met before; our energy sensors have...uh..sensed a singularity in the Soul Society; a beast with a reiatsu of human soul. said the Pasmar with the serious hat on him. Arguements and some angry and surprised voices were raised in the Pasmar council, some exclaiming just a simple "How?!", some simply stating "Down with this monstrosity!" or "Just kill the damn beast" and some other voices which simply made no sense. Serious Pasmar raised his hand and all the noise stopped Gentlemen, I share your worries and fears, but it's not the time for this. It's time to put some solid leads on the Pasmar table; first lets 'craft' the suspect's profile. he said and turned his gaze at a man with glasses with an scientist hat on him. According to the first of Pasmar's laws, sentient beings, capable of sustaining life fall into three races; Humans, Hollows, Shinigami. This law is proved by multiplying x with the amount of pizza contained within each being, thus all things that have pizza in them. We haven't sense any pizza in the beast, thus it's not one of the races, thus it's a violation of the first law the man said as he tilted his glasses back into position.

The audience clapped and the serious Pasmar turned his gaze at a Pasmar with a hillbilly hat on him.I say we kil' the dam' thin', it poison'd our crops, burn'd our lands an' stole our supplies the hillbilly Pasmar raised his fist and the audience shouted "Yeah". The serious Pasmar retorted Did he do all this? to which the hillbilly Pasmar spit and said Nao, but are we gon wait til he does?!. The audience rose from their seats, making angry remarks about not letting the beast burn their crops or take their wives. Serious Pasmar imposed order and nodded his gaze at the Pasmar with the I-like-trains hat What's your opinion about thi-oh shitserious Pasmar and the rest of the audience looked panicked at that train-Pasmar. The panic overcame them and they tried to escape. I like trains said train Pasmar and the room was overrun by a train.

((End of retardness))

Pasmar has not yet reach conclusion, not even after this brief( about 5 seconds long!)lapse. He would finish the cleaning job and then he would take care of whatever caused that sound. As he headed towards the rock with the blood on it, his body slided through something with rough surface; a large but thin piece of wood with a jagged edge, like a wooden human-sized pike. Inspiration befell him. His skill in handling such things was adequate. He leaned his upper-body forward and grabbed the wooden pike from the ground. He immediately twisted his upper body, facing at the sound's location and shouting "CHANCE!" then without second thought, threw it as quickly as he turned around, so as to draw an elliptical course. From such distance, approximately 15 meters, the pike wouldn't hit the specific spot he aimed at, but it was sure to hit something.

[Caedir din Sahra]

Caedir watched carefully as the snakelike mask-creature he was observing continued to clean up the scene of its latest meal. Blood was covered up as earth was overturned, leaving large furrows in the ground like deep gouges of dirt. The feline didn't quite understand the purpose of hiding blood; someone had been killed out there, true, but few humans ever came out that way, and it seemed that there being blood meant little even if it was discovered. So what, they were going to immediately assume it was human blood? An animal could die out in the woods, or any other number of things... Caedir was left confused, as always. Mask-creatures were as strange as humans, it seemed, doing illogical things for no reason whatsoever.

Consideration of the event had to take second priority, however; it seemed that he had been spotted. The cheetah leapt back as the snake mask-creature turned and released a length of wood at him, easily avoiding the blow that came his way. Given the monster's low strength and only mediocre skill with the weapon, it fell short, but that didn't stop Caedir from avoiding out of reflex. The cheetah landed lightly on his feet as he sprang backwards, as easily as though he had taken a simple step backwards. Feline grace and balance had never served him better, and the cheetah almost made it seem too easy as the wooden length shattered into splinters upon striking the ground near the tree he had been hiding behind.

Flight or fight rang out in Caedir's body, the animal instincts wrestling with human logic. Flight would be best, considering that the creature had obviously hostile intentions and likely wanted to consume him, but at the same time, the thing looked fast. Snakes had a surprising way of speeding along despite their method of travel, covering a long distance with their undulating motions in a very short amount of time. If he couldn't keep ahead of it, flight would simply lead him to becoming a meal unless he could outsmart it. Caedir knew the area to some extent, as he did come out to the woods often enough, but the mask-creature could have been around longer, seeing as it preyed in the area. It was possible that the snake-man knew the area far better.

At the same time, however, fight would also mean dealing with those deadly coils and the mask-creature's sharp fangs. Caedir wasn't much of a fighter either, used to using his claws and strong limbs only for hunting and dealing with smaller predators; he wasn't sure either would be enough to deal with the large serpent that was attempting to attack him. He wasn't like humans, who liked to repeat exercises that made them better at fighting; instead, the cheetah preferred to live his life in a rather neutral manner, getting by in a way that allowed him to try and dwell among the other humans in the Rukongai and hopefully reduce their enmity towards his race. None of that ever involved fighting, and so Caedir wasn't sure he would be able to deal with the mask-creature in such a manner.

Caught up by indecision, Caedir only dodged the initial strike; the human part of his mind prevented sheer animal instinct from causing him to bolt, leaving the Beast-Clan to consider the situation for a few moments longer than he should have, enough for the mask-creature to continue its assault should it choose so. It would only be a second or two, however; soon enough, flight would win out and Caedir would flee, if he was not stopped.

[Pasmar Vinnom]

His first attack failed, he knew that as soon as he threw it. The wood was torn to splinters. Nevertheless, it has served its purpose; it hit something and it confirmed his suspicions; someone or something was indeed watching him. He peered searchingly around the spot where the wood split and then at the tree near it the shattered wood. He didn't think about it too much. Whatever was that, it clearly hid behind the tree. What was perplexing but at the same time curious though, was the fact that it did not flee from the spot or even responded in his attack. If it was the first, then perhaps it would have realized that he would eventually caught up to it, something that means that it was a weak prey or a panicked one. As for the second case, it would mean that either the prey is strong enough to face him or utterly foolish and naive.

But, it stayed there. Was it out of fear? Was it out of pure instict? At any rate, it didn't matter. Pasmar for a second stayed immobile and solid, relaxing his whole body. His eyes stared the tree, as if he could put more focus into, his eyes would finally pierce it and reveal the interloper, hidden behind such flimsy protection. In the blink of an eye, he tensed his body, especially the part around his tail and leaned his upper body, forming a 90 degree angle. He lurched forward and within 2 seconds he had covered a distance of 9 meters. Then he launched himself forward by concentrating his strength around his tail and landed just a few centimeters behind the tree.

All this sudden explosion of energy would surprise the beast-human(?)meddler or at least throw him off for a while. This is why after all he chose to do so. In this moment of a surprise or disorientation, he would grab him and crush its like a grape, squeeze its body's fluids out like an orange and then eat it whole like a banana. These thoughts were raging inside his head in response to the Hollow's need for more food, which had finally overcome his mind and threw him in a state of savageness. You were brought to me by chance and I do not intend to let go of you easily, you pesky beast he thought as he extended his open palm to grab his prey.

[Caedir din Sahra]

The snakelike being lunged suddenly during Caedir's moment of indecision, palms extended to try and capture the cheetah before he could move. The monster had underestimated the feline, however, who immediately bent at the legs and sprang straight upwards, using his strong legs to leap just above the creature's grasp, landing on the being's arms as its hands clenched together to grasp him. Reflexively the cheetah sprang off of those limbs again, feet only brushing against the slick skin briefly before Caedir was up and over the snake monster's head, easily able to make the jump with his strong legs and his acrobatic skills. He landed along the thing's thick coils, his balance exceptional as he pushed off from them once more to begin his flight towards the far side of the clearing.

It was obvious that the mask-creature was hostile, attempting to harm him. Those large hands had come after him with the intent to crush what they grabbed, and Caedir knew that if he was caught, the results probably wouldn't be good for him. The cheetah was becoming more confident, however; his avoidance had been easy, the mask-creature's arms easily avoided. Well, easy was a bit of an overstatement; though he was a fair deal faster than the creature that had attempted to grab him, and his acrobatic agility gave him some evasive prowess. Still, he had managed to avoid the grab, and had easily slipped away despite the snake's size and power. Maybe it would be possible to win if he stayed and fought it... but did he really want to?

Caedir wasn't much of a fighter, certainly not like those humans he had observed in the black robes. They used shining metal sticks—what did they call them... weapons?—and killed mask-creatures with them. They didn't even eat the things; the mask-creatures always dissolved like mud in a river when they were killed, so they couldn't be used as food. Both sides seemed to only exist to kill one another; the mask-creatures ate humans, and the humans killed the mask-creatures, for seemingly little purpose. What was the point? It was why Caedir preferred to run away when he was picked on or chased off by humans; what good would it do him to fight them? What would he do, bite them? Scratch them? Harming a human would just make them hate him more.

So what else was there to do? Fighting was pointless, and did nothing for him short of helping him to hunt prey. All he could do was run away. It was all he ever did. Backing away, the cheetah let out a low growl, a warning for the snake-man not to follow him; though Caedir couldn't do much but run if it did, maybe, just maybe, he could scare it off. Certainly, that was what he hoped as he backed out of the clearing slowly, carefully, glaring as fiercely as he could at the mask-creature, hoping it wouldn't follow him.

[Pasmar Vinnom]

The smell was unpleasant to say the least. Pasmar didn't follow most of the beast's(?), or rather, the humanoid cheetah's movements. He was amazed by the sudden use of acrobatics, as the feline creature climbed on his arm and then landed with refined grace on his coils. If it had stopped at the arm part, perhaps Pasmar would let the beast go; he didn't like eating hairy food, after all. But the fact that he used his damn nose so as to show off his acrobatics really made Pasmar pissed off. Not only that, not only the fact that he had to smell his feet, but also the fact that the beast clearly underestimated him. He completely disregarded the fact that it wanted to avoid conflict. It was too late by now...

Then that growl. That growl would be enough to scare off a human or in the best case a shinigami. But before a hollow, it was like a cat attempting to scare an elephant by hissing. But the message was clear; don't dare to follow me."You little-NO ONE LANDS ON MY DAMN NOSE AND LEAVES OUT OF HERE ALIVE". There he said, though he would prefer if he kept his thoughts to himself for the time being. However he didn't stop there, as his rage has finally gotten the better of him. He let out a outlandish hollow cry, enough loud to be heard within 1 km of range, enough fearful to make someone bath in cold sweat and send a chill. At any rate, it certainly was not a pleasant thing to hear or even underestimate. If Caedir was the beast, then it was up to Pasmar to show him who was the monster. And all this, because he landed on his nose with his feet.

Pasmar's rage ignored the feline creature's glare. Under normal circumstances it may have worked but now Pasmar was drunken by his rage. He intented to end this quickly. As soon as he started move, he puked a load of a purple gooey substance. This may seem comical in this situation, but on first glance only. He touched the goo in mid-air with his right arm and instantly formed a polearm out of it. A polearm as tall, maybe taller than him. He passed his lower half of it to his left arm, aiming to wield with both hands then as soon as he neared Caedir, approximately 2 meters away from him, he let it slid from both arms, in a controlled and solid but abrupt at the same time manner. With, he extended it's range enough so he can impale the feline beast with it, but nonetheless he maintained a firm grasp on it, just in case the feline creature attempted to do any more of his acrobatics.

(605/630 Reiatsu)

[Caedir din Sahra]

Oh dear, it seemed he had gotten the mask-creature angry. Caedir backed away slowly as the thing shouted at him in the human language, ears lowering; he had experienced much of the same behavior from other humans when they were upset with him, when he had done something wrong in their eyes. What had he done wrong here? The words were tuned out, but the tone and the snake-thing's posture were enough to suggest anger, frustration. Caedir's first instinct was to cower and make himself small; if a human thought him pathetic enough, they wouldn't strike him in anger, just telling him to leave. They saw him as lesser, an animal rather than a man like them, and so they could do whatever they pleased if they were angry.

But cowering wouldn't work on this creature, and it had already proved that it was mad enough to hunt him down. Like any snake, it could probably smell him and follow his scent, even if he was faster than it. No, Caedir realized that he was stuck at this point, unable to avoid a confrontation. The cheetah would have to combat the snake-thing, and either kill it or at least injure it enough to make it realize that he was not a meal worth fighting over. Many predators backed down when they took sufficient injury, making the risk not worth the prey, and maybe the mask-creature would be the same. Caedir wasn't much of a fighter, but he did know how to take care of himself in the wilderness, using his strong legs and claws as weapons against potential predators.

As the mask-creature lunged at him, the spear stabbing forward, Caedir quickly dodged to the side, rolling away from the attack. Pressing his hands into the ground as his tumbling maneuver allowed him to draw near the snake-monster, the cheetah pressed upwards with his arms and caused his legs to thrust upwards in a powerful blow. This attack would strike at the underside of the mask-creature's arm if it connected, snapping the arm upwards and possibly breaking it at the elbow. To make matters worse for the thing, Caedir's upwards thrust was more of a handspring, pushing him up off of the ground and allowing him to twist gracefully to land on his feet back behind the creature, near its coils. It was a simple maneuver for the feline, whose natural agility allowed him to catch his balance and immediately hurry across the clearing again, putting the blood-stained rock between himself and the snake-creature. Perhaps he was trying to keep distance between them, with hit-and-run tactics? Certainly, he wasn't going to stay up in close range, not while the mask-creature had a weapon and he did not.

[Pasmar Vinnom]

At that moment, Pasmar had realized that he picked the wrong opponent to fight. The feline used acrobatics move with unexpected speed and grace to accompany it, able to easily evade his attack by rolling aside and at the same time attempt an attack out of nowhere by using the strength of his hands to fling his legs towards the underside of his arm. Pasmar could hardle catch up with the beast's pace, not only at his current situation but also in general. He had let himself be blinded by rage for starters, thus his senses were severely reduced. To make matters worse, his humongous body didn't offer him flexibility and mobility which were necessary for his fightning style. Therefore, the feline clearly had the advantage to him.

Pasmar decided to level his anger for time being, as much as he could. But it was too late; the feline's attack would land. As Caedir's legs neared the underside of his right arm, Pasmar tried to draw it out of Caedir's range, focusing on his elbow and using it as a force to guide his hand out of the way, by bringing the elbow behind his back. It was a foolish move indeed, but Pasmar was prone to folly this time due to anger still maintaining control of his head. And he realized it as Caedir's thrust instead made contact with his forearm, specifically the bone part. Pasmar avoided the worst by flexing his hand instead of leaving it relaxed as it was, thus reducing the power of the blow. Caedir's kick bruised his arm. The pain was enough to make it numb and render it useless for fight for a while. Pasmar didn't bend from pain, but let out a deep and heavy exhale, while now holding the polearm with only his left arm. I can feel it..it is by a little margin, but he is stronger than me. Pasmar calmly thought as he felt intense pain cover his arm. Pasmar was a realist, so he could acknowledge when someone was stronger than him. He wouldn't get angry with himself or others over such things. Usually, like now, he got angry over stupid reasons, such as someone landing on his coils. The notion of it still pissed him of though, but not like previously..

As he was lost in his thoughts and his pain, the feline creature took advantage and increased his dinstance. Was he still wary and willing to fight? After landing such blow?. He was fool enough not to run very far away when he had the chance. Pasmar probably wouldn't chase him; he had learned his lesson and besides, the feline creature was faster and more flexible than a giant-sized failed-attempt-to-be-a-snake. Now, he wouldn't care much of the consequences of letting him go, as he decided that his time in Soul Society was coming to an end. The Rukoguys were pretty scarce here too and he wouldn't dare to go further because of the danger of Shinigami. But the feline beast's unwillingness to leave still let a chance; a chance to tear him apart and eat him. He would pluck its hair one by one, like a chicken, and then eat him.

Pasmar took up his polearm and headed for the clearing. With careful steps, well not steps exactly, as he approached more and more the feline creature. He was wielding the polearm with one arm, clearly being at disadvantage, like a vurnerable and weak beast after sustaining an injury. He kept his polearm ready, placing it vertically besides him. He hoped to invite the beast into close combat. If he wanted to take him down, now was the chance.

Numb Hand:1/2 posts
(605/630 Reiatsu)

[Caedir din Sahra]

Caedir's eyes narrowed as the snake-creature started moving towards him, holding his weapon in one hand. He knew it was a weapon because of the pointed end, though he didn't recognize its type. Sure, he sort of knew what swords were, they were like long metal branches that cut through things better than claws did. But the mask-monster had a much longer branch, and only the end of it seemed to be like a sword. Not recognizing the weapon but knowing the end was deadly, he had avoided it prior. However, with a long reach, did it mean he would be bitten by the cold metal before he could get in close? He knew he was fast but... animals had a surprising way of reacting more quickly when cornered. And if the snake-monster felt it was threatened, would it attack before he could strike?

There seemed little choice though as the monster drew close to him. One advantage Caedir had was that his kick had struck at the creature's arm and apparently injured it, as the snake-monster was carrying its weapon with only one hand. Instinctively he knew that he had to attack on that side, to go for his prey's weakened side to bring it down. And it was with that thought that the cheetah dashed forward again, leaning down low to make himself a smaller target as he closed the distance. Twisting to his opponent's right side suddenly, Caedir bent his knees slightly before bringing his left leg around in a powerful side kick, the heel of his foot slamming into the mask-creature's injured arm again should it not dodge. The blow would be fairly strong, enough to further injure the area should it connect.

Of course, that kick wasn't all the cheetah did. Immediately after completing the swing, Caedir rolled forward to prevent a counterattack; many wild animals lashed out when injured, and he expected suitable retaliation. That roll moved him a short distance away to the creature's right, out of range of the monster's weapon. The cheetah quickly pushed himself up to his feet mid-roll, landing with his usual feline grace on his feet. There was enough distance that he could dart in for another quick attack if he needed to, without being immediately within his opponent's range. It seemed hit-and-run would serve him best here; with any luck, he could discourage the mask-monster, maybe drive it off so that it left. Worst came to worst, he could kill it, and see if snake meat tasted any good...

[Pasmar Vinnom]

The feline beast had taken the bait Pasmar laid out for him. He was convicing in his act, mostly due to the fact that he actually was in pain. Nevertheless, the cat-beast had chosen to fight instead of escape, something contrary to its first reaction. Attacking something while it was still in a weakened state it was a wise thing to do but at the same time a foolish one. On one hand, it may be the only chance one could get to finish off, once and for all, his opponent. However, it is in this state that the wounded beast is twice careful and deadlier than previously. The cat-beast had taken its decision. Whether it proved to be a right or wrong one, it would entirely depend on Pasmar.

Just as Caedir came out to face him, Pasmar prepared to employ his double offensive tactic. All this time fightning, he was becoming more and more accustomed to Caedir's acrobatics, kicks(actually paws) and fists(paws too). While acrobatics were mostly perfomed in the air, the feline creature had shown equal skill in using them on the ground. And that was Pasmar's advantage and Caedir's disadvantage perhaps; because Pasmar used a very 'earthly' fightning style, which required him to use the 'force of the earth' to enpower himself. In other words, the ground was his field of expertise. To even make matters worse, he was a close combatant, though he had yet to show that. But his true advantage lied in the fact that he had laid out a cunning trap for Caedir to sneak himself in. The pain was real but exaggerated. In fact there was no pain, but his hand was numb for the time being. Seeing that, the beast would logically take advantage of his weakness, which ultimately meant that Pasmar knew beforehand where he would strike. And with

The cat-beast dashed towards his location, bending itself to appear smaller target for Pasmar to attack. However that did not matter, because before the cat-beast had entered his range, Pasmar rotated around himself clockwise with the spear held in his right hand, bent and following the direction, as well as his tail, which literally sweeped. With that double offensive, in which he had put all his speed and strength into, he intented to shake Caedir a bit. A 'bit'. The spear was purposely put slightly more front so as to meet Caedir's attack. While it was meant to deal a blow, it served more as protection against one. It met Caedir's heel(?paw?)with the blade part, though not with the pointy end as he originally intented but rather with the side, absorbing the hit. As he did that, he felt loosing the shaft's grip for a moment. Despite appearances, the cat-beast was perhaps stronger than him...

But he was naive to think that he would leave without a scratch. Just as the feline beast would disengage with a ground roll, Pasmar's tail would follow. As he had drawn a circle to meet Caedir, leveling the grass around him as he did so, he would knock him on move with his tail. In the best case, he would receive its full might and get knocked away a few meters. In the worst case, it would either throw him off balance(which wasn't a bad thing to happen) or somehow find a way to dodge while initiating the roll. At any case, if he wanted to do the later, he would have to find a way to escape a one and a half meter long tail. The rotating would stop if he made contact or when he had drawn a 360 degrees circle.

Depending on this attack's effectiveness as well as Caedir's reaction, the result of the battle would be likely decided(in Pasmar's mind).

Numb Hand: 2/2 posts
(605/630 Reiatsu)

[Kyomei Kuchiki]

Caedir dropped out. As a result, Pasmar is being awarded TP as if he consumed Caedir.

+100 CTP for consumption
+270 TTP for paragraphs.