Tamer Battle I

Trixie looked at the massive stone structure that stretched into the sky and cast Diego a sidelong glance. "This is where Yakuroro fought?"

"That's what I've heard." Diego said before he paused to gaze in awe at the architecture, curious to know how it had been built. His mind turned from the craftmanship of the Coliseum and to the reason he had come, the rumors of Yakuroro's match. It was said that the Imuchakk magician had fought King Lagi, a skilled beast tamer, and achieved victory.

The fight with the Brotherhood of Ash had given Diego the realization that he was the weakest of everyone he knew. It had also given him the drive to train hard, which he had been doing as of late. As he heard cheers echoing from within the Coliseum, Diego clenched his fist. If Yakuroro had achieved victory, then so would the Fanatiga. He needed to prove to himself that he had become stronger and could protect those he cared for.

"Are you two ready?"

Zanzibar squeed, 'Nap?'

Trixie growled playfully at the spider and looked up to Diego, seeing the determination in his eyes. "I am ready to fight at your side."

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Diego had been led into a small waiting room after signing up for a match against a beast tamer, the foul odor of sweat assaulting his nostrils as he entered. Benches were set up against the walls, most of them occupied by the other fighters waiting. Diego found an empty bench and sat down with Trixie laying down at this feet. He glanced around, taking note of the weapons that people carried. It seemed that most preferred close-combat, though he did take note of a few archers. There were no other beast tamers in the room, which explained some of the looks Diego received. He returned any questioning looks with a youthful grin and a wave.

His name was soon called and Diego was led out into the harsh sunlight with Trixie at his side. As usual, Zanzibar napped on the tigress' back, wanting to sleep till the last second. Diego wasn't sure how the spider managed it with the roar of the crowd booming out around them.

Across the field, Diego saw his opponent, a woman dressed in furs, and waved at her. He came to a halt thirty meters away from the woman, noticing the falcon sitting on her shoulder. The hilt of a blade could be seen over her other shoulder. "My name is Diego! This is Trixie and Zanzibar!" The friendly expression suddenly dropped from his face and he exhaled. "I'm going to try my hardest to defeat you. Don't hold back!"

Khutulun squinted at the strange man-tiger that was supposed to be her opponent, raising a brow at Diego’s cheerful demeanor. She sized him up with a quick tilt of her head, noting the beasts alongside him and the bow strapped to his back. The eagle huntress had seen many strange things since she’d come to the city, but an anthropomorphic tiger man was certainly something new. Slowly sliding her blade from its sheath on her back, Khutulun suppressed a flicker of a smile at the boy’s determined words. ”We are Khutulun and Byamba. True warriors do not hold back…now come!”

The chime of a bell signaled the start of the match and Diego unslung his bow, watching as Byamba took to the sky and grabbing for an arrow. He let loose a Bonecrusher arrow which sailed through the sky towards Khutulun who used her sword to parry it away.

The eagle huntress kicked off the ground to run in a zig-zag motion towards Diego. Trixie moved to intercept Khutulun to protect Diego from harm, however that was what the huntress wanted. From above, Byamba fired two hardened feathers towards Trixie to make her a Pin Cushion.

A squee from Zanzibar alerted Trixie to the incoming danger, giving the tigress time to avoid one of the feathers, while her front-left leg took the other. The tigress' leg went limp as the tip of the feather pierced her skin and threw her off balance. Khutulun flicked her blade to strike Trixie's neck, however the tiger turned in time to use an Iron Parry with a flick of her tail.

While Trixie engaged with the eagle huntress and her falcon, Diego launched two arrows in a Double-Shot. One arrow was sent on a trajectory to collide with Byamba after he attacked Trixie, the arrow grazing along the bird's belly. The second arrow flew over Trixie as she deflected the huntress' sword and struck the woman in the shoulder.

Khutulun winced as the arrow bit into her skin, but wasn't given a chance to deal with it. A crackle of static reached the eagle huntress' ears and she looked down to see an arc of electricity burst from the tiger's mouth. Trixie's Lightning Cannon was intercepted by a parry from Khutulun, the huntress following up with Eagle's Strength. The woman slashed her sword at Trixie's back before jabbing it into her side.

Trixie snarled as the first strike sliced through the muscle in her back and collapsed to the ground. The second strike however, was knocked away by a Ball O' Web that Zanzibar launched from his spinneret. The white spider warbled angry at Khutulun for hurting his friend.

A piercing cry sounded from above and Byamba fired off a barrage of feathers in a Feather Dance. They rained down, striking both spider and tiger to give the falcon's master some room to breath.

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Diego had been watching the falcon, observing its flying patterns and waiting for it to strike. When it did, the Fanatiga let loose another Bonecrusher Arrow that sailed towards the bird and tore through its wing. Byamba's body twisted in the air, unable to use one of its wings, and crashed into the tiled floor of the arena.

Now that the airborne enemy was taken care of, Diego turned his attention to Khutulun. Snatching an arrow from his quiver, the Fanatiga let loose an arrow aimed to the side of the huntress. With hours spent honing his archery, Diego knew direct shots were likely to miss so he had begun practicing Trick Shots. That practice proved well spent when the arrow bounced off the tiles and struck Khutulun in the side as she attempted to cut Trixie's wounded leg.

Khutulun felt the arrow bury itself in her ribs and she let out a grunt as the sword fell from her hands. She dropped to one knee and looked between the wounded tiger, that struggled to get up, and the limp form of Byamba nearby. While her falcon was mortally wounded and she had taken two grevious wounds, the huntress' honor as a warrior wouldn't let her yield. Khutulun's eyes burned with a fierce determination and she reached for her sword.

Gripping it in her hands, Khutulun jabbed it into Trixie's exposed side. She heard Diego roar in fury and smiled, hoping the Tiger-man's emotions would get the better of him. Unknown to her, Trixie was pregnant with Diego's children and her action was the ultimate offense.

Diego dropped his bow in the ground and charged towards Khutulun, his vision red. "TRIXIE!" His claws were extended and he urged his legs to move faster as he saw Khutulun raise her blade to strike again. Time seemed to slow down as he watched the arc of her blade swing downward.

Suddenly, a flash of white appeared at her side and warbled angrily. Zanzibar aimed his thorax at Khutulun and launched a Ball O' Web at the side of the woman's head.

One second, Khutulun was looking at Trixe, the next she felt something jerk her head around and she was facing the crowd. She heard the crack of bone far in the distance and noticed that her sword felt heavier. The huntress realized she was laying on her side and that a shadow was blocking the sunlight. She looked up and noticed a blurry figure standing over her.

Diego glared down at Khutulun and slashed his claws across her face in fury, despite an overwhelming wave of exhuastion. He was about to continue his assault when a whine from Trixie made him pause. He turned to see the tigress trying to stand up. "L-Leave her, Diego. She's not fighting anymore."

Diego cast a harsh look at the eagle huntress' unconscious form before walking over to help Trixie. Zanzibar was busy applying a Healing Wish I and a Webbed Bandage to her wounds. The Fanatiga managed a warm smile at the spider, before he collapsed on the tiled floor. His last thought before darkness consumed him was that Zanzibar was lazy, but he always managed to come through in the end.

He awoke some time later in the infirmary and noticed that Trixie's wounds had been bandaged. After collecting his winnings, Diego led his beasts somewhere to celebrate and thank them profusely for their victory. It had taken nearly everything he had, but Diego had managed to beat Khutulun.

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