12:45am
I walk outside to the small training yard behind my mansion. I throw a few weak punches at the punching bag, my mind blank. I didn't know why I challenged Ricardo. I just wanted to protect my pride and I still want to protect it.
" Don't be fucking lazy about this or I'll dominate your dumb flesh." Deimos growls inside me.
I return to back to my senses and intensify my training. The night is cold and I'm completely sweaty from the intensity, clearly being controlled by Deimos 'cause I let him.
I somehow detest the thought of being won. I cut straight into the air not pausing my body drenched in cold sweat from the coldness of the night. The thought of loosing irked me to my guts. I let out a frustrated growl as Deimos gives me zero breathing space.
I pause, think and then I listen.
"Think before you strike," Deimos instructed,"I know Ricardo, he's strong, has the ability, has great senses but he lacks one thing, calculation. He acts fast not smart. If you can watch his body movements closely, you can tell his next move. Being smart isn't a thing required for every fight, but with him, with how predictable he is, you need it more than movements. To get him, it's easy, bombard him, act non chalant, it gets to him and above all, don't let him win, it's better without a winner."
The Next Day...
Writer's POV
The courtyard was rowdy as everyone stood waiting for Calhoun's downfall. It had never been, the first one to challenge Cairo Ricardo, The Cairo Ricardo, ended up dead on that same courtyard.
Space was created as Ricardo arrived first, he had his lazy grin on, but even now, even when someone has tried to put a stain on his image, his grin shone brighter. His dominance was evident in his smile. The moment he stepped in, nobody spoke, nobody dared speak.
Calhoun arrived few minutes after. People showed their pitiful faces. He carried a similar aura ,only calmer , more controlled and coordinated.
They made eye contact and even the trees felt the hate between them.
" Begin." The instructor said officiating Calhoun's death as people thought.
Cairo moved first. Fast and direct. He closed the distance between them immediately, aiming to end the fight early -Calhoun shited aside - clean avoidance. Cairo followed instantly, no pause, a second strike, then a third. Calhoun wasn't just defending, everybody noticed. He was reading Ricardo's movements, every step, every angle, every hesitation.
" So you do study." Cairo muttered. The air hung tense. Calhoun didn't answer. Cairo slowed slightly, not tiredness, just adjustment. He started circling instead of his first attack, Calhoun did the same. The crowd adjusted, tension rose. Then Cairo changed rhythm, sudden acceleration. He broke distance. Strike landed clean, hitting Calhoun's guard and making him take a step back. Gasps erupted from the crowd . Calhoun exhaled once and then made his first move, sharp and immediate Ricardo didn't see it coming. Calhoun's strike landed on Ricardo's rib, harshly making him move backwards, a move he never makes. His eyes lit with a mix of emotions. Shock and newly found rage. The fight was taking too long, longer than it had ever occurred.
" That's new," he said.
With time they both stopped playing around. Cairo struck, Calhoun blocked. Calhoun countered, Cairo eveded. The courtyard seemed hotter as tension screamed evidently. Cairo clicked his tongue then broke rhythm completely. A sharp strike slipped through Calhoun's guard to landed on his shoulder. He didn't flinch, just smiled. That smile got to Ricardo more than any hit, hate, fury, and amusement all mixed in one expression. Then it happened, they both struck, at the same time. Mid air, Ricardo came to the realisation it was going to be bad, but retrieval would only make him look weak, so he struck anyway. It wasn't just loud, it was terrible. Wind hit the courtyard and even the sand felt it. Then it happened. The clouds finally snapped. Rain crashed down in heavy violent sheets soaking everyone in seconds. The rage in their eyes flashed.
" Time out." The instructor said but thick heavy looking dark smoke came from Ricardo. The smoke twirled around his fingers, his face stern with wickedness. An expression he never has. Calhoun seemed to be filled up with what was coming, so he exuded same.
They circled each other, faces plastered with hate and rage.
" I said time out!" The instructor shouted but no one listened, not even the audience. The crowd stayed still even though they were drenched. The instructor moved closed fear evident in his eyes. The next thing, he was claimed by Ricardo's smoke. His senses jammed. He struggled to find his breath as life left his body.
" Put him down, Cairo Ricardo."
The air stilled. Authority spoke. Any thing that made him show up was bad news definitely.
Professor Kael.
Ricardo dropped the instructor but didn't look away from Calhoun.
" Everyone inside." Professor Kael said and nobody waited except for Cairo and Calhoun.
" This is barely the beginning." Ricardo said, his grin reappearing.
" Of course it isn't. Save that calculated mind of yours for next time. Then we'll know if you really passed Algebra." Calhoun smiled as well.
" Oh, we will know if I did." Ricardo winked before picking a towel and walking inside.
" Your smoke wasn't stable enough." Deimos stated as Calhoun picked a towel walking inside as well.
The Hallway was still as he walked in. The faces at the corridor watched his movements silently. It had never happened, now it happened and the person to do it is walking hale and hearty. Days passed, weeks passed and no one had gotten over the fight. No one seemed to be getting over it soon. It was supposedly Legendary.
Calhoun Salvadore challenged Cairo Ricardo to a fight and there was no winner because the fight never ended. Not because the winner was too obvious but because Calhoun gave Ricardo too much of a tough time.