The Shadow of Peace (Abeiya and ConfusedShipper123)

Phoenix felt herself being thrown toward the floor. She grabbed the wrists of her attacker, using his own weight against him and torquing him down toward the ground with her. She aimed a blow with her knee toward his stomach as he fell over her.

Ares went from being very amused to feeling mildly possessive. That girl still belonged to him.

((AREEEEEEEEEEEEEEES. ARES. AREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES.))

Ulric coughed heavily when the woman kneed him in the stomach as he fell. He had not expected such an immense strength from her. Still, he used his advantageous position to punch her in the stomach with quick, strong jabs, before aiming at her face again, her arms.

(( Advantageous position ))

Phoenix yelped, trying to pull in her legs to cover her stomach. She positioned her arms in an "X" shape over her head to protect her face. She tried to roll onto her side to attempt to crawl away from him and regroup. She aimed another kick at his chest to try to break his position.

((heh. heheh. ARES,YOUHAVESOMESERIOUSISSUES.))

Ulric responded to her attempts to crawl away by grabbing tightly around the waist with one arm, even aiming to deliver his own knee to her abdomen, before punching her again when she was still within his grasp. He gasped for breath again when she kicked his chest, but maintained his position, tearing one protective arm from her face before aiming a jab where the arm once laid, revealing barely visible red marks in the dim light.

Phoenix took a hit to the face and it knocked her head back into the ground. She grappled onto him, hooking her chin around his shoulder. She aimed another kick at his torso and sank her teeth into the flesh on his shoulder, in an attempt to loosen his grip on her.

The woman's opponent hissed, releasing her briefly to shove her shoulders to the floor again, reaching for her wrists to pin them to the floor, and preparing to knee her in the stomach again, repeatedly. He felt her ferocity pouring into him, and he would have shown no mercy to her had he not seen the face that had been hidden by their furious assaults.

Phoenix. Of course.

He looked down at her, barely able to breathe, seeing deep violet developing already upon a scratched cheek, even in the dim light.

Phoenix arched her back, thrashing. She gritted her teeth and screeched and protest as she was pinned to the floor. Now that she was forced to look upon her attacker, she recognized his face. The low light bounced off of the man's brown irises. They were familiar.

Ulric. It almost made her laugh. They could have ruined it all right then and there. Killed one another. What were they to do now? They couldn't both be the last fighters standing Not that either one of them was standing at that moment.

Ulric stared down at her, trying to see if they were capable of communicating as they had without words when walking the sunlit streets of the gilded inner ring. Pushing back the guilt that had sprung up with the bleeding he'd caused others and himself, he convincingly feigned the move that he had been planning, and released her wrists with the goal of aiming a mock-punch to the other side of her face, putting full faith in her ability to act, and offering her the ability to respond however she pleased.

Phoenix decided that she would be the one to go down this time. She allowed his punch to pass over her face. His fist brushed her eyelashes and her head crashed into the ground, following its motion. Her eyes rolled back into her head and her eyelids rushed down to cover them. Her breath tapered off, becoming shallow and slow as she feigned unconsciousness.

Ares' expression soured at the sight of the girl on the ground. It appeared that her guide had one this time.

Even though the conclusion of their battle had been a digression into convincing fiction, Ulric was convinced. He moved away, turning onto his back, from his final opponent, from Phoenix, the bounty hunter, whom he was supposed to have protected. This was only the beginning of the failures to come, which he felt with every agonizing, heaving breath, terribly and finally aware of whatever injuries he'd sustained, on the floor beside her, joining the potentially near-dead others along with them. In spite of his apparent success, and for all emotion suppressed throughout the battle, there was only defeat within him.

---
Stamatia's smirk had grown with every devastating blow delivered from the woman and man on the floor. She was sure that she had found gems with these two. She barely gave her men nor her fellow Capo a glance as she approached them on the floor, staring down at the young man.

"Welcome to the family," she said, in her smooth, dark voice.

---
Ulric stared up at the terrifying face of the clearly satisfied Ariak woman, wishing he could lie unconscious in her presence. This was it.

In his shaky peripheral vision, he saw Phoenix, lying still.

---

"We'll welcome her when she wakes up. Until then."

She offered the young man her hand, testing his strength in his victories. He took it, and she didn't mind that he'd obviously been worn by the induction. He would have time to be strengthened.

Looking to her men, she gestured to the Aster-looking fighter on the floor. So spirited. As much as she hated it, she had a lot to thank Ares for now.

Ares merely smirked as Stamatia passed him. He felt around in his jacket and found a pack of cigarillos and a lighter. He swiftly, in what seemed like one motion, lit one, put it in his mouth and returned his other possessions to his jacket. After taking a drag and exhaling, he walked up to the men now carrying the Aster girl. He offered his hands. "Here. Give her to me."

The man gave Ares the girl without question, following Stamatia and her other successful recruit down the hall, abandoning the internallybleeding failed inductees on the floor.

---
Ulric knew that this apparent success and his acceptance of the woman's hand was solidification of his place in her sector. He tried to keep his gaze away when one of Stamatia's guards picked up his partner from the floor, but he couldn't keep his attention away when he passed her to another man that he had not noticed before, a smoke and light masking him momentarily.

Ares, the Capo, the man who'd created hell in Phoenix's life. He clenched his fists before thinking of his own actions, and like her knee to his gut again, he realized that he had not been so different on the floor not so far away. For worse reasons. He felt the defeat rise like flooded canals overtaking small houses. As much as he still wanted to attack the man, the sense of what he'd already done was enough to keep him from considering such actions again, even when they would inevitably become necessary again.

It took all Phoenix had to remain limp as she was passed to the man whose voice she recognized. It was difficult for her not to react to the scent of cigarillo smoke.

Ares took her into his arms and then laid her torso across his shoulder blades, holding her legs in one of his arms and her arm in the other, in a fireman's carry. He smirked at Ulric as they walked, but said nothing.

Phoenix couldn't take it. She allowed herself to be roused into consciousness. There was no point in putting on her Lita facade, Ares already knew her. "Put me down," she murmured.

Ares smiled, "Hm? I didn't quite catch that."

"Now," she growled in reply.

"You are not to speak to your superiors that way." He lifted her and moved her so that he was carrying her like a groom would his bride. She aimed a strong slap at his face, but he caught her wrist and forced her arm down by her side. "Ah, ah, ah," he chided, "Welcome to the family."

((CARRYING A BRIDE.t.t'))

Ulric watched with smoldering rage as Ares walked alongside carrying Phoenix first like a fireman, then shifted her to his arms. He wished she would have succeeded in slapping him, his drive to attack the man once more ignited when he saw their interaction. He glanced to Stamatia, who still seemed to be riding the high of watching the vicious fight of her new soldiers. Perhaps her distraction was enough to do at least something.

He tried to keep focus on his intake and exhale of breath again, but this night had already been too much.

"She's awake now," he said, for only Ares and Phoenix to hear. "If she's alright, there's no need to keep carrying her."

---

Stamatia strode along through the corridors, pleased to have the two be treated in Umbra. She darkened her gaze, however, when she noted Ares' removal of the girl from her guard. He always had an ulterior motive, and observing their interaction, she noted their familiarity. Immediately, she began to question her acceptance of this inductee. The male's response was less questionable, yet notable and perhaps suspicious all the same.

She glared at the Capo with carrying her new inductee, thoroughly displeased, prepared to take her from him herself. She should have known this was one of his schemes.

((ARESWHY.))

Ares laughed at both Ulric's reaction and Stamatia's apparent annoyance. It was all so amusing. But he supposed that the girl was Stamatia's recruit. He weighed in his head for a moment whether or not he cared enough to stop messing with her head.

Phoenix took that moment as an opportunity to wrap her arms gently around his neck, almost caressing him. He looked at her, amused and puzzled all at same time. Smiling, she punched his chest. His recoil allowed her to squirm out of his grasp and fall to the ground.

Phoenix smirked as she stood up, wincing at the pain from her injuries. It didn't matter. The fall was worth it. Ares glared at her. He did not enjoy being made a fool of.

She walked up and got next to Ulric. That's right, b*tch.

((THATISRIGHT,B*TCH. PHOENIXPWN: The best defense against Richardry.))

Stamatia was visibly pleased, suppressing her urge to even laugh at Ares, when she noted the girl's response to Ares. At this point, it seemed she would have no worries about disloyalty from her. They could get along very well, possibly. Satisfied, she looked ahead again, though she kept watch in her peripheral vision. She enjoyed watching the youth get what he deserved.

---

Ulric was obvious in his response, his disturbance with Phoenix's nearness to Ares shifting quickly with her fist becoming the one he hadn't been able to throw at him. He saw her wince on the floor, and felt responsible again, but his satisfaction with Ares's humiliation momentarily overshadowed his ongoing sense of guilt.

He looked to his partner, and in seeing the shape she was in up close, with the slightest bit more light sent the guilt back into him. He hid it momentarily, wondering if either of them understood what they had done to each other back there, and if it would cause them further turmoil in the future.

He wished he would've let her win instead.

((Ares Stats:
Hit Points: Same as Ego Points
Strengths: Ego
Weaknesses: Ego
Fun fact: Ares' ego does not fit on the internet.))

Ares walked behind everyone, pouting slightly with his arms crossed over his chest as he went.

Phoenix bit her lip, swallowing a laugh as she looked back at him. He scowled, which just added to her delight. If there was one thing she would never forget about Ares, it was how he hated to be put in the corner, where he could not immediately take the upper hand.

Phoenix shifted her gaze up to Ulric. She detected guilt in his face and she allowed her shoulder to brush his for a moment, touching the back of her hand to the back of his. She didn't want him to feel guilty. He had saved both of them by fighting her. If either of the Capos figured out what they were playing at, they would be dead. Or worse.

She offered him one last, soft look before facing front again. It's alright. I promise.

((XDDD <3))

Ulric clarified the guilt on his face. In order to maintain his status as "good guy character", he attempted to intricately convey his guilt for hurting everyone that he had in the "ceremony" that night. It was a skill of his. Conveying guilt. Like any other classic CS character, this was one of his prominent traits.

Ulric was surprised by the brush of Phoenix's shoulder, her hand, such subtle motions having become signs of comfort for them in their time together. Looking over at her again, he scarcely believed the softness upon her face. They would be okay. He returned it, still apologetic, but realizing what their actions meant for them now. They were here, they were together. This was progress.

Yet he couldn't shake the anxiety that crept into him by walking these halls again, and what such "progress" could and would mean for them. Soon, they stopped in front of a wide and tall, Ariak-style building and the woman before them paused.

"You will be treated for injuries here. You'll have a bit of time to rest and recover before we give you your first assignments. Until then, I welcome you once more to the family," Stamatia said, looking to the girl before the boy, as she had not yet given her an official welcome. But she was pleased again with what had come from the ceremony, no matter the tarnishing by her fellow Capo's involvement.

She had the men lead them in. Immediately, they were met by several nurses of varying descents, then brought to a large room with two beds, where they were each tested and bandaged and otherwise tested. Ulric began to feel the symptoms of his injuries that his writer had not written in until this point, which were extremely painful and very delayed because I just Googled about internal bleeding! The pain in his abdomen and chest had heightened as he'd made the trek to the hospital. It seemed that most of his more serious injuries had been obtained in the last few fights of the bloodbath that had been the induction ceremony. Suppressed adrenaline had sustained him throughout until the final moments. Nurses administered painkillers to each of them, after determining the treatment necessary for them.

After a few moments, a woman with clear, creamy skin, light green eyes, looking traditionally Elosi, save for her onyx-colored braid, with a white jacket over her neat clothing entered, immediately taking up the two charts from the ends of her new patient's beds. Inductees. She was surprised there weren't more of them this night, although there had been rumors of a heightened standard in recent weeks. She could only imagine the shape which the others around this pair were in. Given the Aster bent to their looks, she assumed they were part of the Saphinia sector. It was good that they had arrived when they had. It was clear that the extent of what they'd sustained was more threatening than they might have realized on their trip over.

"Congratulations," the doctor said, standing in the space between the beds. She glanced each of them over, the well-built young man and the young woman with her subtler strength. Each of them with their contusions and the bleeding in need of immediate treatment within. She couldn't help but think of their futures. They were both very young, though she had seen younger in far worse shape in this place. There was an expanse of knowledge and a fascinating mingling of tradition and progress in Noia, but there were also baffling practices as what she witnessed in Umbra. She would not have chosen to work here, but there was a certain benefit to even the smallest of connections to the underground. These two were certainly not the worst she had seen since associating with them. But every night seemed to give her more reasons to question where she'd chosen to moonlight.

"The two of you are going to need to take it easy for a little while, so I hope you're not too eager to leave. I will be supervising your treatment, though most will be administered by the nurses. I'm sure you'll find our service here exemplary. I wish you both the best and hope you'll make the most of your time in our care. Good night," the woman continued before turning away and exiting the room.

((AND SHE WAS NEVER SEEN AGAIN. BECAUSE THAT IS JUST HOW IMPORTANT THAT CHARACTER WAS.))

Phoenix sighed, but was compliant to the nurse's words. The last thing she wanted to do was spend all night in the hospital. She wanted to go back to the youth hostel and curl up in bed and deal with everything that had just happened in the morning. Never had any plan for infiltration for a contract gone this awry. It almost made her head spin.

A nurse approached her and began to check the scratches and bruises on her face. Phoenix was not entirely opposed to this, as one of her eyes was beginning to swell shut and the feline scratches on her cheek were still oozing blood. "This is going to sting," the nurse warned, as she dipped a sterile cloth into a clear liquid. Phoenix winced when it made contact with the open gashes. "Almost done, almost done," the nurse said, trying to console her. Her eyes were sympathetic. The nurse then proceeded to dress the wounds on her face and the external ones on her arms.

Phoenix turned and removed her shirt, allowing the lacerations to be cleaned. The nurse gave her a thin robe to wear in the meantime.

"Nearly done, dear." The nurse allowed her to lay back on a hospital bed. She inserted a long needle into Phoenix's arm. She explained that it would help "heal up anything that was hurt on the inside." "You'll need to spend the night, dear."

"Alright. Thank you for everything," the bounty hunter replied.

(("WE'RE LIKE MICHAEL CERA DETECTIVES."~Phoenix and Ulric))

Another nurse arrived at Ulric's side, dressing the few lacerations which were still bleeding. She was the first to notice the stain just on his shirt, prompting its removal. He tried not to think of how he obtained it, certain that the woman had seen worse here regardless. She cleaned and bandaged the wound gently as possible. He did not respond to the sting of the sterile liquid upon where his partner had bitten him not long before.

When the woman was finished, she handed him a robe to change into for the night.

"Mrrrennrnnnrrrrmmmmrrnnnerrrrermerrgerrrderrnursestuffrererernmmmmrrrnerrrggghhhyerrrguysgotosleepnarerrrrnrrrmerrrrrfggrhhh. *

"It would be best if the two of you had plenty of rest tonight. We will be checking in periodically, but otherwise, we'll see each of you in the morning."

*transcribed by YouTube Captions

Phoenix pulled the sheets of the hospital bed over her body because she was feeling more than slightly exposed. Before her nurse left, she had given Phoenix an ice pack. Phoenix laid back and held it in light contact with her right eye. She was really in a lot of pain. It was almost alien. Her whole body seemed to throb like a giant migrane.

She turned carefully onto her side to look at Ulric. "How you holding up, fighter?"

Ulric, feeling rather self-conscious, was quick to cover himself in the flimsy bedsheet of the hospital bed once the nurses left. He laid still as possible, every bruise pulsating, though the pain in his abdomen pierced more than the rest. He was concerned, but hoped it would subside in time, especially with whatever painkiller the nurse had administered to him moments ago.

"I'm... doing alright," he replied his partner, craning his neck to see her. She held an ice pack to her face, where her eye had become swollen. He nearly cringed, knowing just how far they and their opponents had gone. The challenge was keeping those on the floor from his mind. The sound of their bodies hitting the ground, the moans of agony, the faces blurred in his efforts to enter this sunless world again. The young man strained not to think of where they would spend the night. Perhaps the rest of brief lives.

Phoenix's breath caught for a moment. She could feel that her ribs were not quite expanding as much as they should have been. There was definitely some bruising around her torso. She gritted her teeth and forced herself to breathe evenly.

She smiled softly at her bodyguard, who looked severely troubled. "Glad to hear it. You're stronger than you look, you know. You've still got that baby face," she teased. She tried to keep things light with him. Ulric was not taking any of this very well.

The bounty hunter could feel the painkillers start to hit her bloodstream. It sent her head swimming a little and she laid back again, letting a small sound escape her lips. They were making her drowsy.

Ulric stared at the door to their hospital room, thinking of the corridors they traveled, the other rooms they'd been in this night. Of the people they'd communicated with over the two weeks. Associates. Soldiers.

"...You're stronger than you look..."

He felt his chest tighten at the words, cringing slightly at the strange ache it created, beyond his physical injury. He felt incapable of obliging his partner's desire to continue to keep them from the dark they were within.

"Phoenix... you realize that... that we've probably killed people tonight. Even... even if we haven't... they'll just leave them there. But we put them there. On that floor."

His steely gaze never left the spot upon the door, his voice grave.

Phoenix's gaze hardened as she stared up at the ceiling. "Ulric, you understand that we would be on the ground like those people or worse if we hadn't fought, yes?" she asked. "And that we wouldn't have a ghost of a chance of seeing daylight again if we refused to fight? That we would never have a chance of making all of this madness stop if we were not a part of it first?"

She exhaled hard, forcing her ribs to do their work correctly. "I know that we might have killed them, Ulric, but they would just as easily have killed us. You're being paid to protect me, Mr. Konstan," she practically spat, "This is a part of your job. It's a part of my job. It's a part of reality. I've dealt with it. Maybe you should try doing that, too."