Cruor De Violaceae

Izar walked through a deep wooded area, cursing the distance between the railroads in this Godforsaken country. He slid down a small hill, coming to a small clearing. He looked up at the sun, its position suggesting that it was just past noon, nearing one o'clock, "It shouldn't take me too much longer to reach the station." Izar said to himself, knowing he was most likely alone. He looked up to through the hole in the trees, letting the light hit him in the face and fill him with the warmth of the afternoon sun. He let out a pleasant sigh, getting ready to get moving again as he wanted to be back in Onibus by tomorrow morning. He had been gone for several months and couldn't wait to get back to his home, his friends, and of course, Akumu. He wondered if she would be indifferent to his length of absence or if she would be happy to see him. He hoped for the latter, but he wasn't sure that she would even admit it if she had. He shook the thoughts out his head, knowing he would find out tomorrow when he saw her again.

Genghis observed from the trees, examining his target. It would be a quick and simple knockout. All of Team Brazen was feeling the heat after clashing with the Shepherds. Although Genghis didn't feel anything he knew someone to mess with would give the others joy. Plus he enjoyed a challenge, and the violet haired man's magical presence was immense and slightly intimidating to even Genghis himself. The blood dragon slayer decided that his best plan of attack was to slow his foe's blood flow and began the process of slowing Izar's blood, forcing him to pass out.

Izar began walking, letting out a yawn as he found the forest to be quiet tranquil, reminding him fondly of the one behind the guild hall. Were he anywhere but Bosco he might have even found a tree lie under and take a quick nap, but this was indeed Bosco which meant he would have to keep his guard up. As Izar continued walking he felt himself getting sleepier, his vision fading in and out to the point where he was blind for several moments. That's when he began to feel the pain, his body screaming for oxygen despite him breathing normally. What the hell is going on? Izar thought, grasping his throat out of instinct as he fell to his knees, ''Dammnit, why does it hurt? Poison?'' he thought as he reached for his teleportation Lacrima, knowing that he would fair a far better chance of survival with the council than he would out in the woods alone.

With one final push, it was ensured that Genghis had forced Izar into submission, but released his control once Izar had passed out. The scarlet-haired man leaped down from the tree he had been perched in. Genghis inspected his target. ''A guild mark. Lean, strong, his blood smells off. He's different than a normal human.'' The dragon slayer lifted Izar up onto his shoulder and began to jog; hopefully, it would only take him a half hour to return to Dragon's Eye.

Izar could feel his heartbeat slowing, something was very wrong. His mind did its best to race to find solutions to his current situation, but little to nothing came through as his mind was just as foggy as his vision, perhaps even more so. He felt his hand touch the teleportation lacrima however, he fell face first into the dirt before he could activate it. He lied there, having no strength to move as he was suffocating. Fucking Bosco, was the last thing to race through Izar's mind before he completely lost consciousness.

Izar awoke later, unsure of how long he had been out. The first thing he noticed was the pain in his shoulders. As his eyes slowly adjusted to it's new surroundings, he looked up to find that his wrists were indeed chained to a wall of some sort. His shoulders were forced to bear the entirety of his weight as his feet did not touch the floor, his ankles also being chained to the wall. What the hell is this place? Izar thought as he attempted to cast Cosmic bullet, pointing his middle finger toward the cuff only to find that he could not cast the spell. He attempted to requip something only to fail at that as well, the chains being infused with powerful nullification magic. The pain in his shoulder only grew as he struggled to move but dared not make a sound, not wanting to attract the attention of whoever placed him in this situation.

A petite red-headed girl stared straight into Izar's violet eyes. "Boo." She said before skittering backward, a ring of golden keys chiming as they loosely swung from her belt. "Geeeeenghis!" She sing-sung, "He's awake, and he's cute!" The woman's scarlet hair swung around in its ponytail as she moved towards the hallway. "HEY! Guys! I said to get down here!" She screamed down the hall towards what would be some of her comrades. When she didn't hear any immediate response, the scarlet-haired woman crumpled to the ground. "Assholes..." She spent a few minutes, fiddling with a small teddy bear that was attached to the hilt of a sword before staring at Izar, her crimson eyes locking with Izar's. The woman didn't say a word, just watched the chained man.

Izar jerked back at the sudden appearance of the red haired girl. He remained silent as she spoke, just listening in hope that should could provide him with any information that might help him understand exactly what was going on. When it was clear she would not provide him with truly useful information on her own, he decided he would simply ask her. "Hey, what's going on? Where am I? Why am I chained up? I didn't do anything that would get me sent to jail, and you don't much look like a guard of any kind." Izar said, knowing he had come off a bit rude, though. Something in his gut told him it really didn't matter whether he was rude or polite, if it got him answers he didn't care.

"I'm Elise. You're in my guild, and lastly your chained up because we can't exactly have a prisoner running loose." She replied quickly and simply. The sound of footsteps echoed through the halls and five other figures appeared. A woman with wavy, thick blonde hair. A man with square-framed glasses and emerald hair. Another man wearing a white masked with black swirls adorning it and tufts of crimson hair. A woman with short lavender hair and lastly, a man with dark, black hair and crimson snake-like eyes that set fear into anyone who gazed directly into them. "Hey guys!" Elise cried happily.

Izar studied the group before him, trying to gauge exactly what he was up against. The first thing he noticed was how rag-tag the group seemed, each seeming out of place from the others in his or her own way. If there was a leader among them, Izar was unable to determine just who that person was. How exactly he might be able to use this to his advantage he did not know, "Who are you?" Izar asked, "What could you possibly want with me of all people? Surely there must be some mistake?" He continued, testing the water on how willing one might be willing to talk more than the others. He knew he was in a dangerous situation, being unable to use his magic was one thing; but he was completely powerless with his arms and legs chained to the wall the way they were. "Perhaps you could let me down? It'd be much easier to talk that way, much more civilized."

The blonde looked at the man in the mask who nodded, moving forward. The woman smiled and began to speak. "We are Team Brazen. Honestly, I don't know what you're doing here. I suppose Genghis thought that you'd be a fun toy to have around for a while... That is of course until you die." At Izar's request, Kuvira motioned to Genghis, who then let Izar out of his cuffs. "If you're thinking of escape at this moment, let me tell you that it is not a wise option. Someone could get hurt." She smiled at him as if knowing his plan. The petite, periwinkle haired woman shifted uncomfortably while the tallest of the group, the green haired man seemed disinterested and bored. Elise, however was circling Izar's body much like a predator circles prey. She seemed perfectly innocent in intent but in reality, the woman was thinking of over twenty ways to bring the man pain. Most concerning of the bunch had to be the red-eyed man who had covered one of his eyes with a patch. And lastly stood the blonde and the masked man, standing side by side a mere meter in front of Izar.

Izar rolled his shoulders, they were completely stiff. He had no idea how long he had been up there, but it would have had to have been more than a few hours for his arms to feel this way. "Thank you for letting me down. You seem to misunderstand me, while your friend did indeed bring me here by force, I'm sure it was a mistake. I don't know any of you nor much about Bosco besides the fact that I'd rather not be in it." Izar said with a slight laugh as he watched Elise out of the corner of his eye. He swallowed hard before smiling brightly, "What do you say we introduce ourselves? I'm Izar Tasya, mage of Koma Inu and member of the Magic Council. I've already had the pleasure of learning the name of this charming young lady here," Izar said, motioning toward Elise. "But I haven't had the pleasure of learning the names of the rest of you."

"If he brought you, it isn't a mistake," Kuvira stated. At the mention of the Magic Council, her face sharpened. Meanwhile, Elise had stopped and had taken her place in rank with the others behind Kuvira. "As you can see. I'm Kuvira Lyon, the leader of Team Brazen, and we are all Dragon Slayers and members of Dragon's Eye. We are, their strongest team." Everyone was surprised albeit Genghis that their leader had revealed their affiliation and her own name. "Come on now," The blonde looked at her companions. "Fess up, we don't want to be impolite to an esteemed guest," Kuvira smirked lightly. "Genghis." Said the man in the mask. "Gwen." The lavender-haired woman spoke softly, her presence growing smaller by the minute. "Seizei Asakase." The tallest man spoke, adjusting his glasses. "Xander." The eyepatched man added. "And last but not least... is me! Elise!" She smiled broadly, throwing her hands in the air as she spoke. "So Izar," Kuvira began, "What is so interesting about you. It's the reason you're here. Genghis only takes interested in those who are strong, or... different."

"It's nice to meet you all," Izar said with a slight bow. His smile remained present on his face despite the clearly dangerous situation he was in, "Special? As far as I know, I'm a pretty average guy." Izar said before having a false Aha! moment, "My hair! Yes, that must be it. Vibrant purple hair isn't very common. At least, that's what my significant other has told me." Izar said, trying to humanize himself. He was no fool, having a pretty good understanding of human psychology. In these types of situations, someone will dehumanize their victim, seeing them as an object more than a living breathing person. He knew the best course of action was to try and show that he was not an object, but indeed a human being with their own life and loved ones. "That being said, I don't know why my hair would interest someone enough to kidnap me. Maybe that isn't it after all." Izar said, a fake look of defeat taking over his expression. "Wait, perhaps it's because I can do this," Izar said, holding up his hand. At the tip of each figure formed a sphere of cosmic energy which then quickly solidified into one of the planets in the sol system. These planets featured Earth, Saturn, Venus, Mars, Neptune. "A pretty cool trick huh? Right?" Izar asked, "Again, I don't know why this'd get me kidnapped. Do you all have any ideas?"

"Cut the bullshit," Kuvira said, turning her right arm into a solid metal pipe via usage of the Metal Dragon's Club spell. She thrust her arm forward, letting the pole extend until it made forceful contact with Izar's stomach, shoving him backward. "Chains of the Metal Dragon." She said triggering chains that snaked from the walls and the ground, to ensnare Izar within. "These are anti-magic chains of my own creation, it is impossible for you to break through." Kuvira paused, sending a cold stare towards her teammates behind her. "Everyone out but Genghis." The four began to walk away, not questioning the authority of their leader. "So." The blonde turned back towards the chained Izar. "Genghis has taken an interest in your and brought you here for us to toy with. I'm guessing it is something to do with your blood. He has a knack for that sort of thing." She sighed, letting her arm turn back into flesh. "Take it away Genghis." Genghis took off his mask, revealing the smooth, pale face of a mere boy in his late teens. One of the reasons why he wore a mask, was to reveal the only delicate side of himself, his age. The man walked smoothly toward Izar, taking a small syringe out of his pocket. "Hold still," Genghis spoke calmly, his deep monotone voice resounding through the cell.

Izar felt the wind knocked out of him as the pipe slammed into his stomach, sending him back several feet until he felt his back hit the wall. He then felt the chains began to wrap their way around him. He quickly tried to collapse the planets he had just created into black holes, but they instead simply faded away. It was at that moment that Kuvira's words registered in his head, Damn, I should've just tried to fight when I had the chance. Izar thought as he felt the chains tighten around him, effectively pinning him to the wall. Izar coughed as he tried to catch his breath before shooting Kuvira a smirk. He wouldn't show weakness, that's what they wanted and he wouldn't give it to them. "Strong, and scary. I might find those traits charming under different circumstances, but right now they just make you seem like a bit of a bitch." Izar said with a slight laugh before realizing he may have gone too far. When Genghis came at him with the syringe Izar cringed a bit, hating needles more that just about anything. Izar did not find his calm voice in any way comforting, "would you mind at least disinfecting the area. I really hope that needle is clean too." Izar responded turning his head as to not have to look at the syringe coming toward him.

Genghis didn't say a word, and pricked Izar quickly, drawing some of his blood. The crimson haired man lifted the syringe towards his mouth and opened, swallowing the blood. "It's ichor, the blood of immortals." He said plainly looking at Kuvira. Internally he was in on a high, the taste of the blood was intoxicating, it was the king of all the blood he had tasted and he wanted more. The blonde let a snort escape in response. "Well you're going to have fun aren't you? I'll let you have some time to hook him up to a drainer, but then can we use him as a punching bag? I'd like to see how far his immortality will get him against us." Genghis nodded, knowing that it was better to listen to her than argue. He wanted Izar to be exclusive to himself, but it was his price to pay for the blood of an immortal. With a quick fluid motion, Genghis moved around the room and set up a small station, forcing a needle into the vein on Izar's left arm that would gradually suck his blood through a tube and into a four-liter container. It didn't take long and the bloody dragon knew that he would have some more time to play before Kuvira returned. He pricked his own hand and let scarlet liquid flow through and formed it into a blade. "Now. Be still okay?" Genghis said calmly, approaching Izar.

Izar winced slightly as the needle entered his arm and Genghis drew a bit of his blood, a look of disgust forming over Izar's face as he watched the crimson haired man drink his blood, "That cannot be sanitary," Izar said, his words completely ignored as Genghis began talking. Izar let out a fake laugh at Genghis' words, "Ichor? Immortals? This is insane, even by Bosco standards. Do you even hear yourselves?!" Izar said, feeling a bit of blood from his open injection wound on his arm trickle down his forearm and onto his hand before the wound healed itself completely. Izar watched as Kuvira left, his words being utterly ignored as though he had not said them at all. He was then hooked up to some kind of draining station that began to syphon his blood out. Izar gritted his teeth as he felt the sucking power of then machine slowly draining him of the warm red liquid that flowed through his veins. He then watched as Genghis formed a scarlet blade from his own blood before walking towards him, telling him to keep still as he brought the blade closer and closer to him until the tip touched his stomach. Izar instinctively tightened the muscles in his abdomen despite knowing it would only make it hurt worse. Izar grit his teeth hard when the blade began to slide into him, parting the skin like a hot knife would butter. Izar pulled down on his chains in an attempt to lift himself up enough so that the blade would no long be pushing its way into him, but he lost his strength half way through and fell back down onto the scarlet blade. Izar let out a muffled sound of pain despite his desperate attempts to hold it in. Izar was no stranger to pain, but the warm blade sliding into him right now was agonizing, the warmth of the blade felt like someone were pressing a hot iron onto him, but while a hot iron would cauterize the wound and stop the bleeding, Genghis' blade would not, leaving Izar's blood to soak through his shirt, down Genghis's blood blade and further down his arm.

Genghis spent the next minutes savoring the delight of cutting through flesh. As the blood dripped onto his arms he smiled, raising it upwards and greedily licking the blood off of it. It was utter reverie. Nothing had ever made Genghis feel so alive, so human. But then it was all taken away as he felt a tap on the middle of his back, the highest point that petite Gwen Dullahan could reach. "Genghis." She said, her voice trembling at the sight of her blood-stained guildmate. "What?" He said, thrusting the woman backwards, leaving a bloody handprint on her pure, snow colored dress. "Kuvira sent me to clean him up. She wants you to leave." The man snorted, angry for being interrupted. Usually he could sense anyone approaching but he had gotten so lost in his own excitement that he forgotten his own senses. Knowing that the woman wouldn't lie, he collected the large container of blood, briskly unplugged Izar from the tap and exited the cell. She waited a moment, listening for footsteps and then walked into the corner of the room. She picked up a greasy cloth and approached Izar, pressing it lightly to his abdomen. "I need to clear the blood away." She mumbled, her soft voice ringing out like tinkling bells. Once the blood was clear, a shimmering water appeared around her hands and she began to heal his wounds. "This'll be much quicker than your regenerative healing. She wants you ready as soon as possible." Soft lavender bangs fell over one of Gwen's eyes as she focused on her work, channeling an appropriate amount of magic energy into her healing.

Izar felt the blade slide out from the wound it had created in his stomach, he heard voices but couldn't bring himself to focus enough to hear exactly what they were saying. He closed his eyes, he knew it would do little. He wasn't dreaming, or in this case, having a nightmare, no. He was chained to a wall with a gaping hole in his stomach, the blade had pierced his stomach, he could feel the acid burning his insides. It was agonizing, but he was okay. He had experienced much worse before. That thought comforted him little as he knew that this was most likely just the beginning. He suddenly felt a comforting feeling wash over him, the pain subsiding. This shocked him back into focus as he stared down at the lavender haired woman whom held her hand over his wound, he recognized her from the line up earlier, Gwen had been her name. His first thought was of course, why? Why would she heal him? He didn't have to wait long before she answered his unasked question. Izar's head fell back down as she spoke, "Yes, we wouldn't want to keep the bitch queen waiting." Izar said, feeling the wound slowly beginning to close. "So this is what you do? You keep their victims alive? No, no, that's not what you do. You keep their pulse going, that's it. The truth is that they're long dead before their heart stops, isn't it? Am I right on the dot? All you do is make sure it lasts as long as possible, their pain and suffering. It must be funny to you, to see them so close to death, so close to what they desperately want, just to pull it away from them at the last moment" Izar said, knowing his words were most likely wasted. "What the hell is wrong with you people?" Izar asked weakly under his breath, "Why am I here?" Izar finished as tears began to role down his cheeks. He couldn't do anything to stop them, nor could he wipe them away, "I just wanted to be happy, for once in my life. I just wanted things to be okay."

Gwen's voice caught in her throat at his words and she scrambled backward, falling onto the floor in the process. "No. You're wrong. No. No." She mumbled over and over trying to comfort herself but the reality was, that keeping victims alive was the main part of her duty, Sure she was an accomplished archer and a dragon slayer to boot, but she was kept around due to her knowledge of healing. Footsteps echoed down the hall and hot tears spilled from Gwen's face as she recognized the scent that accompanied it. "Oh? What's this?" The blonde spat, looking down at Gwen's crumpled form as rage built inside her stomach. "Did the prisoner threaten you Gwen? Did he cause you pain? Remember I said that I'd never let anyone hurt you again. Now. Don't you want to return the favor?" Kuvira's voice turned sickly sweet as she helped Gwen to her feet. "Kuvira I'm fine." She muttered, wiping away the water on her skin. "Gwen." Kuvira said, her voice growing into a cutting edge as her grip on her companion tightened. "I told you to cause him pain. Fair is fair right?" "Right." Gwen said, ripping herself away from Kuvira before drawing her arms upward and creating two tendrils of water. The woman looked straight into Izar's eyes and mouthed I'm sorry before sending the tendrils rushing towards him and down his throat.

Izar closed his eyes as he felt the water rushing down his throat and filling his lungs. He wouldn't describe the feeling as necessarily painful, not yet anyway, but the feeling was familiar to say the least. Memories came flooding back as the water completed its filling of his lungs, seeing to it that he could not breathe. The feeling reminded Izar of long ago, of another experience he had in Bosco. Izar opened his eyes, through them it would seem as though he were underwater, his hot tears stung as they clouded his vision, the two figures standing not far from him were mere blurs to him. As his consciousness began to fade, he began to feel as though he were floating. His body began to scream for oxygen, begging for it much like it had when he had been in the forest before waking here. This feeling was still quite different though, unlike before, he could not breathe at all. Every single gasp for air was met with the swallowing of more and more water. The illusion of there being no logical explanation for his dilemma that had brought him hope of escape before was gone. The water filling his lungs was a clear presence that demanded to make itself known, the chains around his wrists and ankles saw to it that he was powerless to do anything but accept it all as it was. Izar could feel the hands wrapping around him, the cold hands of death. He had felt them many times, having become very accustomed to that feeling, and the encompassing darkness that accompanied it. He knew it would only last a moment, he would die only to wake again as he had done so many times before. Death for him was no rest, simply a quick reset. He would awake fully healed, and ready for whatever other tortures awaited him. Everything past his nose had been devoured by the darkness, and his turn was next. Izar suddenly felt the water be pulled from his lungs, air filling them soon after, sending Izar into a coughing fit. He began to cough up the remaining water in his lungs before the coughing fit caused him to puke, the puke being a mix of stomach acid and the blood that had entered his stomach through the wound Genghis had made before it was healed. His breaths were deep and shaky as he tried to replaced the oxygen lost to him through the near drowning. He looked up toward the women, still little more than blurry smudges in his vision, "Why didn't you just let me drown?" Izar asked, "It's not like I would've died," Izar asked, genuinely curious. Though, he highly doubted he'd like their answers.

"I made her stop," Kuvira said plainly as Gwen's hands dropped back to her sides. "You see. Gwen here is too shy to stick up for herself and you're going to apologize for hurting her. Until then, she's just going to fill your lungs right back up with water. Painful isn't it?" Gwen herself was staring at her feet, her head bowed in shame. "Right Gwen? You won't go easy on him?" The water dragon slayer mumbled her response. "Yes. I won't stop." Her gaze rose until it once again met Izar's. "You don't mind if I watch do you? It's more fun than watching Seizei kick Elise's ass at Shogi." Kuvira said, slumping back into a metal chair of her own creation. "No, Kuvira. I don't mind." Her responses were cold and mechanical, Gwen didn't want to make her friend angry. "Alright Gwen, start it up again." The lavender-haired woman nodded, this time sending a single stream towards Izar where it promptly wrapped itself around his head, blocking his nose and mouth, and then the stream was returned into his mouth.

"I can see that," Izar said in reference to Kuvira's comment about Gwen not being able to stand up for herself. Izar didn't need to know as much about humans as he did to see that Gwen was hesitant, nervous, unlike the others. Whether she wanted to do what she was doing or not was meaningless, she was doing it, and that was all that really mattered in the end. Izar looked Gwen directly in the eyes, "I refuse to apologize for telling the truth. I won't go against my own morals to appease monsters. Go ahead Gwen." Izar said, his voice was hoarse from all of the coughing, but he hoped the seriousness of his words had been properly conveyed. Izar took in a deep breath before Gwen's water wrapped itself around his face, covering his mouth and nose for a few moments before entering his lungs. The breath of air Izar had taken in was quickly replaced by water. The water again filled his lungs to capacity, the same events that had occurred before took place. Izar could feel death closing in on him only for it to be stolen away as the water was again pulled from his lungs, leaving him gasping for air. His eyes burned with tears that flowed down his cheeks, but he refused to acknowledge them, "Go to hell," was Izar's response to the silence that followed, knowing they were awaiting some kind of apology. This process was repeated many times, each time Izar responded with something along the lines of "Fuck you", "You bitch", "Go to hell", or some combination of the three. Izar wretched as he threw up more water, he couldn't remember how many times he had been nearly drowned, but it was more than he would've liked. Curse his stubborn, somewhat prideful nature that made him refuse the women's request. He breathed heavily, unable to respond in any of the ways he had before, he would open his mouth only to find that no words would escape, only quiet whimpers among other soft sounds of held back anger and pain.

She couldn't take it anymore. The repeated insults, the pain she knew was being caused by his own hands. Gwen's hands dropped to her side and the stream of water fell limp onto the ground. Kuvira glanced over, fury depicted in her brows. "Why'd you stop." the blonde asked quickly. "I'm running low on magic power. I don't want to waste it on someone as frivolous like him." Gwen's expressions were distant and cold. She was clearly still hurt by his words but she didn't wish to harm him. "Fine then." Kuvira accepted her words, too bored to analyze her expression. "Alright then." The blonde stood, dismissing Gwen. "Go upstairs and clear the ring. I'm going to have some fun." Once the petite female exited, Kuvira continued toward, releasing Izar from his chains. "Come on. Get up." She said as his body slumped to the ground. Two small strips of metal formed in Kuvira's hands as she prepared for him to attempt an escape. When he did, it would be almost instantaneous when she sent the nullifying cuffs around his arms.

Izar hit the ground, his arms too numb to allow him to catch himself. He slipped his hands underneath himself, requiring all the strength he had to lift himself up. Having his entire body weight supported by his arms for hours on end had caused his muscles to ache and tear in several places. These wounds would soon be healed, he'd have a fighting chance so long as he was no longer chained up to the wall. Izar forced himself up to a knee, leaning over to cough up the remaining water in his aching lungs. All of the coughing had most likely bruised his ribs as well, but again, they would soon be healed. He wiped his mouth as he slowly stood up to look the blond haired woman in the eye, needing to look downward as she was shorter than him. His legs had been thankfully spared the numbness his arms suffered from, this was good considering his main martial art allowed him to utilize a wide variety of kicks. Izar took in a deep breath, exhaling quietly through his nose. He needed to stay calm, he needed to have control over his own emotions and actions, even if he couldn't control the situation he was in, not yet anyways. "A ring you say? You intend to fight me? From the looks of yourself, haven't you already made enough poor life choices?" Izar said in an attempt to sound much stronger than he was at the moment. He had no doubt he could fight despite his injuries, but the weakness in his arms would make things much more difficult. If he could hold out until he regained the strength in his arms, he'd stand a real fighting chance.

Kuvira sent the strips of metal flying around Izar's wrists, tightening them into place. "Yeah. I intend to beat the shit out of you." She smiled sinisterly. As the woman began to walk towards the door she beckoned to Izar, telling him to follow. "Besides, if you kick my ass in front of my guildmates, they'll have a riot making fun of me. That is, until I shut them up again." Her gaze flickered backward as she watched him follow. "By the way, don't try anything dirty until we get into the ring. It won't end well for you and I'd like to have some fun. As much as Genghis and Elise would enjoy watching you bleed for a few hours, I'm not in the mood." When the pair reached the top of the staircase, it opened up into a wide hall with a metal cage in the center. Currently in the ring was Gwen, mopping blood splatters off of the ground. The woman quickly picked up the mop and bucket, leaving the ring.

"I can tell you from experience that using fear to rule people normally bites you in the ass in the end." Izar said as he followed Kuvira, keeping an eye out for anything that could help him if he did decide to try to make an escape of some kind. "And following you will end well for me? Please choose your words more carefully. It really doesn't matter what you intend to do to me, the simple fact of them matter is that I have all the chances in the world while you only get one. I try to escape and somehow end up bleeding out on the floor? so be it, I'll wake up feeling good as new. I get lucky and slit one of your throats in the process? Well, that's one less for me to take care of next time." Izar said as the two entered into a larger room with a large cage in the center, "A cage befitting the animals who own it." Izar said before his eyes met with Gwen's. He quickly averted them, not fully knowing how to feel. While it seemed she did not get the same sick pleasure the others got from causing people pain, that did not change the fact that she participated in it. Izar didn't like the cage. It was metal, meaning Kuvira would most likely use it against him if things didn't go her way. It was a cheap trick, to give the opponent the illusion that they have a fighting chance while knowing full well they do not. Izar stood at the cage entrance for a moment, "You're going to cheat, aren't you? Why else have a ring made entirely of metal? The second things stop going the way you want them to you're going to use the cage as a weapon. If that's the case, and you intend to use your magic anyway, why not make this a truly fair fight and allow me to use mine? Why not let me fight for my freedom? Is it because you're scared you'll lose?" Izar said, hoping his attempt at getting these chains off of him would work.

Kuvira scoffed. "I may be what you consider "evil", but I'm not that dishonorable. I will be wearing cuffs too." At the last statement, Kuvira put her arms out, allowing Elise to strap two strips of leather around her wrists. The makeshift cuffs were covered in several magic runes that automatically suppressed Kuvira's magic, an effect that could be sensed by any mage around her. "You should be able to feel my magic gone. I'm not lying." Kuvira walked into the cage first, staring at Izar to confirm that it wasn't a trick. "Like I said, I may be a bitch, but I'm not a liar... Usually."

Izar looked at her skeptically, his disbelief in her claims mattered little as it wasn't as though he had a choice. Stepping into the cage Izar felt trapped, even more so than he had been before. This was most likely because he was indeed standing in a cage, with an animal he didn't believe wouldn't bite harder than she needed to if cornered. Again, not that any of that mattered as his was no friendly spar, Izar would be fighting to kill her as he was sure she would be doing the same. His arms were nearly healed, the decreased speed of his regenerative rate most likely being due to the magic-nullifying cuffs around his wrists. He would feel much more confidant in his fighting ability once he was able to use his arms, while his kicks were indeed quick and strong, with weak arms he would have a hard time defending himself. Izar took in a deep breath as he stared at the blond haired woman from across the small ring. "I don't understand the point in any of this. I'm not going to go down as easily as you think, so if you're doing this because you think it'd be fun to beat the shit out of someone in a completely one-sided fight, I can promise you that you're wasting your time." Izar said, beginning to bounce from one foot to the other while staying in one spot, similar to a boxer's movements during a match. "It doesn't have to be this way at all, you could save yourself a lot of time and embarrassment by just letting me go. Do so now and I promise not to tell the council or anyone else of these events, that sounds like a fair deal to me." Izar said, ready for her to launch at him at any moment. "I'll end up getting out of here sooner or later anyways, you might as well let me go before any true harm has come to either of us. Try to think rationally about this."

Kuvira bent her knees, bouncing from left to right. Her arms were slightly bent as well, in a traditional boxer's stance. She smiled. "I wasn't expecting you to be easy. You've got guts, unlike half the spineless bastards in here." At the mention of the magic council she snickered. "Come on; we've got warding and concealment magic coming out of our asses; this place is off the map. Sure, you may get out of here one day, but it won't be for a while and you'll be too drugged up to remember where you came from. So, I'm not letting you get out of this." Kuvira shot forward at an astonishing speed, throwing a quick right hook before, continuing the motion of her body to deliver a high left roundhouse seconds after it.

Izar threw up his right leg so that the sole of his foot connected with her wrist, sending the punch upwards and away from him. He then quickly dropped to a crouch, bringing that same leg back down and around in a sweeping motion toward the one leg Kuvira had on the ground. He took the round kick to his collar bone, grunting as it connected. Due to the sweeping motion of Izar's kick, he quickly moved over to the side, letting the kick continue its downward motion. Jumping to his feet, Izar grabbed his shoulder to survey the damage. It ached, but his collarbone wasn't broken. "You don't seem to get it, but I'm done talking to a brick wall. I won't need to hunt you down, because I'm going to end you here," Izar said before lunging toward her, bringing up a roundhouse kick aimed towards her face.

Kuvira slid to the ground, easing her fall then quickly and pulling her body into a back handspring. As she began to comprehend Izar's movement, she thrust her left arm while taking a step back, letting his foot collide with her forearm. She grimaced at the pressure then as his leg dropped, she moved in. Kuvira sent her right fist towards his face, simultaneously sending her left toward his stomach.

Izar jumped back to dodge the punch aimed at his stomach but failed to do the same to the one aimed at his face. The punch connected with his jaw, sending him leftward. He felt a sudden rush of light-headedness that quickly subsided. Using the momentum, Izar spun, bringing up his foot for a kick aimed at her side. Whether or not this connected, he would continue to spin, switching legs and bringing around the other to kick her in the jaw. He could feel that his arms were, while not fully healed, enough so for him to use them. He would most likely begin doing so, switching back and forth between his Krav maga and his Jeet Kune do.

As the kick came towards her, Kuvira's eyes briefly flashed in anger, then subsided back to their normal state. She ducked quickly, dodging the high kick and sprung forward towards Izar. She outstretched her arms in an attempt to lock them around his side, then would pull him into her as they fell, thus tackling him to the ground. "I fight to win. There's no way I'll let a punk like you be the death of me." She spat out as she moved.

Izar felt Kuvira's weight crash into him, sending them both to the ground. Izar brought up his knee to put a bit of space between him and her as she lied on top of him. "Is that anger I hear? Have you really lost your temper so quickly? What kind of leader are you?" Izar asked, bringing up his arms to block any punches she might throw his way. he quickly rolled over in an attempt tho throw her off of him so that he could get back to his feet.

Kuvira scrambled across the ground and quickly got to her feet, her blonde locks whipping wildly around her head. "I'm the type of leader that is respected." She raised her fists quickly and darted forward, once she was in front of Izar she thrust her left hip forward, carrying the momentum of a leftward punch toward his abdomen, the instant after she made the same motion on her right, sending that fist toward his throat. She then sprung upward, attempting to send her knee into the bottom of his jaw.

Izar quickly scrambles to his feet only to be met with a punch to the stomach, causing him to grunt. When he saw the next punch coming he ducked, dodging the punch but meeting Kuvira's knees which slammed into his jaw, sending him upwards and back. Izar felt his back touch the wall of the cage as he rubbed his aching jaw. It was only then that her words registered in his head. He stopped leaning on the wall, getting fully back to his feet again. He wiped his mouth which was red with the blood from a busted lip, "The look in their eyes, I know it all too well. That is not the look of respect." Izar says, getting ready to re-enter the fight, "They're afraid of you." he said as he sprung forward toward Kuvira, pulling both his legs into the air as he went for a drop kick aimed at her chest.

"I am going to kill you," Kuvira said furiously, ducking under Izar's body. She was absolutely livid, though an inkling feeling churned in her stomach. ''There's no way that Genghis or Elise fears me. But... Gwen.'' Kuvira too a moment to look off at the side, glancing at them. Stone glares met her until her eyes briefly met with Gwen, who glanced away as soon as their eyes met. Kuvira inhaled deeply, then ripped the leather off her wrists. "Yeah. I broke my promise because I'm going to knock you out, then let Genghis drain your body until you're a fuckin' raisin." Kuvira's skin hardened, turning into metal and her fingers elongated into claws. "Come."

Izar got to his feet again, turning to see Kuvira ripping off the cuffs that were meant to make this fight fair. Izar knew he had to be careful, her metal claws ready to tear his apart the first chance they got. "It doesn't have to be like this, Kuvira. I promise you things don't have to be this way, they never did." Izar said, slowly moving around her, knowing she could lunge at him at any moment. "People aren't inherently bad, there is no child born into the world wanting to hurt another human being. It is only as we get older, as we begin to try and understand what is right and wrong, that we can sometimes get lost and wander down the wrong path without even realizing it until it's too late. Take it from me, ruling by fear, hurting others because you're sad, or angry because of what the world has done or taken from you. It's a path that only leads to regret. It's not too late to walk the right path, Kuvira." He finished, knowing he couldn't win against her barehanded. He prayed that perhaps his words would get through to her, that things didn't have to go further than they have.