"So it begins..."

Flashing crowds, roars of gladiator-like battle. Erebus felt right at home, shocked to have learned he was contesting with Yumi. Many would assume her weak he knew this, but unlike them. He knew exactly what her capabilities could do. The boy wouldn't make the mistake of letting his guard down and instead arose the stone steps with a look of seriousness.

The announcer introduced him as Strategist. Good, maybe people would remember him after this, it all depends on how well he can show out for the crowd. Was victory within reach? He surely hoped so. He dressed in a white tee-shirt, pants, and shoes. A jacket was laced over his shirt, it would do him well to cushion some blows he figured. At his waist was a leather belt, all typical clothing. Not weaponry, this was it. Time to get it ticking.

Erebus moved to the far right corner of the ring-- and waited for his opponent to finish travelling her steps. He'd assume she would await his attacks, as most normally were the type. So he readied his launch forward.

"Good luck Yumi, I'm not holding anything back for you. I'll show you what I've learned in such short time."

"Let's teach an old dog new tricks then.."

Erebus muttered under his breath, watching her take slow movements, his arms stretched and he sighed. She appeared to be preparing to act on the counter offensive the entire fight. Lame. That meant only an equally aggressive offense would be able to hold out.

Instead of launching off, guns flying he'd take a moderate to quick pace towards her. Saving his true speed for when the time called for it. The boy knew that with a frame of  only four-feet nine-inches; this woman's arm length could barely exceed two feet reach while his were easily near three. She could do what she wanted on the counter product, but if he approached this like a boxing match he could assume a tight defense himself. Steady mind, steady form.

As he approached he circled the woman constantly ready to sidestep or fling to the flank ready to wrap arms around her and supplex. However, seeing as the two dark one's were battling wits for the time. He sent out a few light jabs. Concentrated concise and aimed low enough to graze the woman's mandible but also slide into her esophagus. If movement debilitated this, then he could brush his fists against her cheek into the ear and successfully stun.

Meanwhile, his legs were parted enough to allow any kind of unpredictable dodge. Which-- as most knew, would be an ideal component in outlasting Yumi. Her physical strength was nothing to scoff at and he would not fall victim to it's unstoppable engine. Thanks to his holding back, he could react swifter to any coming onslaught. But based on finger detail, the strategist assumed Yumi was going to attempt joint locking or pressure point advances... Maybe something of the like.

He'd need to combat this with ambidexterity and bodily control. After all, being flashy gets you no where. True power lies in effective, energy, and peace of mind. Yumi was a mage, he was a normal. Losing this would go against his belief that hard work and dedication could win out against others. Despite knowing her experiences; he demanded a win from himself. Should he fail to do that-- then he fail to hold his enemy on a standard anything as equal as he'd want too.

If the jabs landed, the male would launch forward and pick her up from the pits to slam. Tunneling on top of her and executing a leg-lock submission. though, to say such an attack was planned would be dubious. The jabs were a distraction. He wanted to draw out a counter from her. Counters could be reversed, rash thinking like charging in-- well that couldn't.

The male would not fall victim to underestimation. Show your true colors, old priestess! So Strategist can tear them down like the twin towers. This will be a true battle of wit and resolve. The tournament itself would need' pick it's own poison by choosing one victor over the other.

 

Yumi was playing the safe approach, his fist just missing her mandible by an inch, perhaps had he swung with all his might, he'd have caught her dead in her tracks. Alas, he too, was a smart fighter though and wanted to protect his movement speed for now. In the coming second-- he'd find it have came in handy. Since his opponent would have tried escaping him in slower aptitude.

Both fighters seemed cautious and stalwart, but even in the face of a martial artist like Yumi; who had years more experience, Erebus was noticeably less phased by the fear he once had around her. To be fairly honest, the strategist doubted whether he could've beaten Yumi in her prime. If she were so intimidating as an old woman, what was she in her occult ages? The thought didn't relinquish the bead of sweat forming upon Ere's brow. In fact it hastened it. Though he looked at her as an equal for the moment. Mental battles were the true tests here. However, stamina was a tool he'd trained for and he demanded he outlast Yumi. Outlasting was a common war tactic. It ultimately, well normally, came down who could stalemate the other until they gave up, unless, it became total war. The complete and utter annihilation of an enemy in all ways possible. But them being allies might keep that from happening.

"Aw, c'mon Carnage. Your God wouldn't want to be kept waiting would he?"

Erebus said, a dark smile spreading over his half-content face. To taunt out a fighter was to rob them of patience, which in turn, robbed them of virtue. He was brought up around Grimoire. Kissed the toes of these motherfuckers... He knew what they were about, and he was going to use that. What was once fear for Yumi was now backlash. You can't defeat someone you look up too. You have to get on their level. As Erebus felt his courage rise in the pits of his chest; so too did his focus. His inner spirit was aiding unison and now he'd show a taste of his true colors.

Instead of giving Yumi any room to breathe, as her feet moved her away, Erebus shot forward and would attempt to interrupt her entire frontal and defensive assault by snatching her up by the neck. Her mistake? She dashed at 5 meters a second-- his base speed-- most people's actually. Any faster and he might've missed the opportunity to chase her down. There was no gap anymore, his forced to prevalence had defeated the chance of breathing room subjected to him nigh seconds prior. That was one odd defeated, now onto the next!

At this point in time Yumi had not done anything to her form or footwork-- those were enacted after the fact-- but he had changed destiny, in fact as it stood now; all she had done was reveal herself to him. Because her actions were trained elsewhere-- the art of escape by dashing-- a reversal was unlikely in the old one's current state. Erebus would lunge to grip her by the back of the neck, using his newly acquire physical strength, he'd prolong the assault by attempting to drop her against the hard stone. The strength of the slam could equate heavy damage even if she didn't hit her frail old head. The initial use of the slam being to do just that.

Head trauma would've dealt her a toll, sadly she was more endurant than the everyday opponent. He'd need more than that. Should the slam have succeeded Erebus would slide across her body and slam an open palm over his superior's esophagus. A knock out point if he could just manage to hit it enough times before she was able to turn that around. Even then, he expected such a thing and kept his body level and balance in order to dodge roll. Women of her stature liked to knee men where it hurt, so any slight movement of the lower body could set him off as to escape.

Assuming Yumi tried to dodge roll the neck grab, Erebus was ready. His past was littered with sports and he knew exactly how to deal with such a thing. He'd skid off like a baseball runner for home plate right behind her, dropping off to either land a foot into her own solar plexus or central nervous system located in the back. Or to have ducked any attacks turn at him as she ran. Keeping his arms up to parry any incoming feet or hands once he reached the ground. Then, via his position, body on the ground, He'd turn her comeback into a submission, using his legs to trip and entangle her into a leg lock. If he were able to pull her leg out of socket, now this was onyl an attempt mind you, he'd slid over and put her in a head lock next.

As many knew, getting on the ground-- especially with smaller foes and using submissive force to choke out blood-flow would thereby cause them to pass out in mere seconds. However, to test the metal of this combo was yet to be seen. Erebus need only await to see if his constant oppressing force was bulk enough to compete with the old timer's delayed body reactions. Her speed was impressive, but she needed more than that to stop a prodigy at all things physical. Magic wasn't his niche, but he had all his life dedicated to this. If he couldn't beat an old lady, what was it he could amount too?

Yumi was a tough opponent, the toughest based on Erebus' knowledge going in. To climb this mountain of difficulty he'd keep his reactivity up. But just how long was he going to be lucky? Was it sheer luck she attempted to neglect sight of him to create distance? The onyx-haired adventurer needed to remind himself that was a possibility. He needed to keep himself together. No fatal errors. There was more at stake than this tournament, he wanted Yumi's respect too. He vouched for validation by voice and reason, however now, he throttled for it with fists and timed meditation.

 

A grunt escaped the strategist as he again missed a grab on Yumi. She was really agile, which fucking sucked for him. But-- he could respect her attempts to stay away. After all, he was a dirty dog and she was an old bone, what do dogs do with bones? Chew them up, and spit 'em out... Her swollen facial expression did not create intimidation within Erebus anymore, this ego in him was only rising by the second. He was growing more fluid, learning her like a book. While it might not have been known to her, the onyx-haired boy had been a prestigious athlete in his late teen years. Able to play any sport, any position, after quickly learning from others. Most would even tout him a prodigy, if it weren't for his personality being so rough and aggressive.

Nonetheless the two were now eye to eye, separated by a small area. Red hues met golden ones, as the two were now clocking in on each other fast. The muscle fibers seemed to be peeling under Yumi's arms, she was truly something strange. No cramps or aches in her after years, no loss of strength over the ages. A spectacle... But that did not mean a new champion couldn't be born to make the old one quake under his shoes.

Erebus was... A lot of things, not many positive. But he was a hard worker-- depriving himself of his reward was just something he could not do. Yumi would have to beat him senseless if she wanted this win under her belt. Now it became obvious based on the sprint alone Yumi was able to drive in quicker, so instead of throwing a punch or some attack to meet hers, he raised his arms defensively. First allowing the much softer right hook to hit the side of his raised arms. Then eating the damage induced by the powerful jab right at the center of his guard.

Muy Thai was rather violent, but elegant in style in comparison though Erebus was a self-taught fighter. He wasn't very well versed in classic fighting styles such as Carnage's, however to a fighter that had faced it many times in the past though... He knew many of it's latent go-to tricks. That little bit of knowledge was giving him the edge here, then again, Yumi was unlike any jerk he'd fought before. She was an infamous killer with notable vigor. Playing into this demon's hands could be fatal. Even if they were allies outside the ring. Her face told him that alone, and the guild didn't care much for an adventurer-- he was just someone weak to replace. Yumi on the other hand was something terrifying sided with her magic.~

Strategist stopped dead in his tracks which may've surprised Yumi; since so far he'd only shown himself to be an offensive combatant. His first action would be to emulate Yumi's footwork, though his own take to the footwork was done in a sneakier way-- since it acted as the start to his coming onslaught. As the boy proceeded to ready his gauge, he was biting down damage in hopes to catch his 'superior' off guard-- her punches as noted below. Following this damage his ability to come back from the attack would become evident. ↓

Erebus had spread his legs and took both her weaker hook and striking jab into the block. Stinging his arms, but overall coming out unscathed. Too many hits like that though and his arms would probably fracture. Based on that attack alone Erebus had successfully done the following.

• Calibrated her physical strength in comparison to his
  
  
• Uncovered her fighting style
  
  
• Created the illusion she'd be able to land more on him
  

Now what she did not pay attention too, rather, what was impossible for her to pay attention to. Was that her focus would be on his central nervous capacity. i.e. the Solar Plexus. Her specified attack destination moment's prior. The boy had cleverly devised a way of slipping his foot in under her frontal right leg while all actions had been input (during her attacks). The leg that stuck out in front towards him, usually to stabilize forced exertion in a Muy Thai form, was what would plant her to the floor if he were lucky.

Muy Thai operated in a certain fashion, as all martial arts did and it had not been trained to react in the way she had set herself into; maybe had she not jumped back so suddenly without realization. Doubling back against a trip which would raise and slide under her would deal damage to her ankle and expose her to his all powerful assault coming now.

Her own movement into the trap was swift and unpredictable to say the least, as she had planned on going back into her defense. That was no longer the case, placing herself in the bear trap was her own mistake. As she moved backwards her flawed stance would trigger the break in form and her own undoing, it would knock her off her footing.

If you were to consider the method had occurred naturally without fail. Likely would too, since one couldn't think to hit something with such pin-point accuracy without neglecting what was beneath them. Peripheral vision could not justify the focus alone, rather, that might've been the beauty in his style. Plus, Erebus was much longer, taller, and slender so his movements would've been mistaken for bracing impacts in front of her. Which indeed was partly true, but also not entirely. Custom styles like his, one's bred of experience, were always equipped with their own tactics and strategies. After all, he wasn't named The Strategist for nothing-- his intelligence was something of value.

This wasn't what would make her trip to the ground, but it would put her so off balance-- and in such an extreme form of unbalance too. That her foot would now be moving up off the ground, and her back falling into the ground. Her agility might've saved her-- but against Cassiel, that was wishful thinking! He wasn't done now, and he wasn't going to finish this combo without dealing a heavy blow against his enemy. Erebus now carried his own serious glare in the eye-- enough to compete with her religious hatred. His hands went in to snatch Carnage up by the raised leg before anything could be used against him via attack. Yumi was brilliant sure, but no one could think faster than the .5 seconds interval left up to her unless the movement was plotted. Sadly for the unsuspecting granny, it was-- and by her opponent no less. Erebus was now on the counter productive.  

The woman was probably only now finding the shock in her mistake. As her foot was locked in both hands. Erebus would yank, and twist it in such a way by the joint, that it'd break. The pressure point was proceeded by squeezing to keep her paralyzed mostly. But before that-- rapid momentum of his own foot attempted travel to her left leg. Disengaging it from the ground and also sending her head into the floor hard. Enough to draw a heavy strike of blood from the fall should it have landed. That meant she was now working with a broken leg, a painful strike to her left leg, and heavy head trauma. The boy wasn't through though. The nervous system was on his side. He could keep twisting her leg to draw out supreme pain. The pain alone would send neural impulses into her head. It was time she have a taste of her own medicine.

Should Yumi have thrown her left leg out before he could kick it in, Erebus would lift her and slam her a second time. Two heavy strikes to the head would bring her closer to losing consciousness. Then he follow up by inserting more pain to her foot via pushing it past the break.

His goal was now obvious. He was going to put her out through pain and pain alone. Fuck knock outs-- make them scream. Make even your friends coddle the flooring. Erebus was done with the games, he was now fighting for a more evil inner purpose; hellish intent rising from the bowels of his soul. He respected Yumi, but inside Erebus had slowly fallen to a sadistic nature himself. He found hurting this elderly woman refreshing. He would continue to splinter her with the extreme damage until she passed out of pain.

He was ready to pull away and enter a defensive stance at any coming second. He had left no holes for her. His game was clear, he was not to be underestimated ever again. Especially in the ring.

"Goto sleep Carnage."

The boy spoke, significant sweat had built around his body. He was not right in the mind now, he was much darker than before. Perhaps his ego which had been growing was the intent for his sadism to be quelled. Maybe he was the worst in this guild after all... Who could doubt it? All he'd done thus far was collect bad influence. That influence was now what defined him. A monster. Test your might priestess, either ask your god for help. Or lose by the devil himself-- standing here before you.