POP! Went someone's jaw, and falling to the ground. They groaned, got up and backed off into the crowd surrounding him and Azlateen, the fighter that clocked him in the jaw. Az stood ready in a fighting stance, looking at the audience. He bounced on his toes, turning every so often to see the next challenger. Sweat dripped a bit down his bare chest, his corded muscles glistening with every little and big move. Someone stepped up to the plate, and sniggered, the man being small and hunched over a little bit. They circled each other for a moment, the smaller man grinning with confidence.

He rushed at Az, and aimed a flying kick at Az. Az blocked it with his forearm, and flung the kick to the side. He stepped forward quickly and punched the man in chest, and little man flew a few yards. He backed out too soon enough. Again, Az was on his gaurd, looking around. The next one that stepped up was a bit bigger than the last. Az didn't even wait, and threw a hard side kick at the guy mouth. He fell, but got back up and faced Az again. He stepped forward and threw a fast punch at Az. Az wrapped his arm around the punch, moving to the side, and taking hold of it. He turned and loud snap came from the guys elbow. The guy screamed, Az let go, and he retreated.

It almost seemed like Az was getting jumped, but he wasn't. He just challenged everybody to face him, and so far he had taken out more than three. Now though, the crowd was getting a little aggravated. One person rushed in, only to be kick back into the crowd, another filled in without a moment to spare, only to be knocked into the crowd. As predicted, this went on for a while, until at least half the small crowd was hurtin' in some way. No one stepped back in, and Az waited. "Come on, this is a training ground. Its good experience. Now who's up for a lesson?" He asked out to the crowd, grinning, not having a mark on him.

He knew he was a little more experienced than everyone else, but he didn't put anyone down for him. In this way Az didn't believe he was better than anyone, just someone with a few more talents or more experience or something or other. No, he didn't like putting others down for what they couldn't do, unless he was taunting them in a middle of a fight, but he would be joking afterwards.

"Well?" Az called out.

The sun was slowly setting over the rolling hills of the Salquendor grasslands as Arthano Vemerald walked slowly towards an outdoor training arena. He had never before fought in an arena, and wondered if he could hold his own in a battle against some more experienced fighters than whom he had been fighting as of late. A cough escaped him as well as some blood which slowly dripped from his mouth. Arthano quickly wiped it away with his cloak which floated in the wind. His left hand rested on his katana which was kept sheathed at his side on a belt that was used to hold up his baggy black pants. His black tunic was one that had kept him warm on many lonely nights, but it wasn't very good when it came to protection against the blade.

Arthano shrugged at his own wardrobe, his black boots smashing rocks under his feet as he approached the arena. He could already hear the cheers as well as the moans from the arena as there was apparently already a fight going on. He was sure he could hear some voice calling out, loud and powerful in its confidence, but he wasn't quite sure who it could possibly be. Entering the building, he was stopped by a rather short man. "Gambling or fighting?" The man spoke, standing in front of the door.

"None of your business." Arthano spoke softly, his voice emotionless and cold. "I just wanted to know buddy because the guy in there is kicking everyone's arse. You might not want to go in there unless you want to get embarrassed. I heard he could take on a giant by himself and come out of the fight without a scratch." The man smirked, almost as though he were wondering himself if the rumors were true. Arthano looked at the man with his yellow eyes, making the man jump backwards in fright. "I'll take my chances."

Arthano slowly walked through the hallway that led to the stands, standing at the rail with everyone sitting behind him, their voices roaring in the backround. His yellow eyes gazed upon a man who was obviously very skilled, and very powerful. He could see something about him, a sort of glow, a power inside of him that Arthano could only recognize because of the curse that lay upon himself. This was no ordinary man, that was evident by the men who lay in the arena unconscious from the fighters blows.

When the last man fell to the ground, Arthano smirked, leaping over the railing and landing in the arena. He stared at the fighter with those yellow eyes that held so much pain, so much anguish behind him. One could tell just from looking into Arthano's eyes what kind of life he had led, what kind of pain he had gone through, and the lives he had taken. "I wish to learn." Arthano spoke softly, just loud enough for the fighter to here him, taking a few steps forward before stopping. He noticed that the man was using just his hands, and so he did not unsheath his weapon.

"Please, teach me the way of pain. I want to... feel it." Arthano spoke softly, his voice almost a whisper, and yet it still reached the ears of the fighter. "Show me my own blood."

((

lol :$ ))

Az looked around some more, and heard a voice behind him. He turned, and saw someone standing there, talking to him. Something about pain, or something. Az didn't know who it was, or cared at the moment. His demon side was roaring with energy and anger. He just let himself go, as he found it good for his mental well being if he didn't want to go crazy. "Pain? Blood? You got it!" Az said sinisterly, thinking this was just a normal person like the rest. But why would anyone want it? Az thought to himself silently, since it was a little bit odd how he wanted to be 'taught' pain. Apparently he wasn't in enough fights.

He charged at the new guy, and let off a flying side-kick aimed at the man's face. He demon strength put extra force into it, and his mastering of martial put the speed behind it. Almost perfect, as Az would put it. His black demon eyes glowed with lust for a fight, and what was better than someone just asking for it?

Arthano could see it in this mans eyes, the desire to cause havoc, in whatever way he was allowed to without getting in any real trouble. And in those eyes Arthano could see a glow and a color that seemed impossible for any real human being. "He's a half demon" A voice whispered in his ear, and Arthano knew it was right, despite the fact that the very voice that was whispering to him was a demon in itself. The fight was on and Arthano knew it. He might very well have to fight for his life, and yet even as he thought such thoughts, he didn't really care, as though his life weren't worth much.

And it probably wasn't.

The half demon's speed was amazing, and had Arthano not anticipated the attack he would have been caught of guard. But just by the way the man had moved, just by the speed with which he had attacked and the way his body had twisted Arthano could tell exactly where he was going to attack and with what part of his body. The fact that the attack was so simple in itself allowed Arthano to easily anticipate it, and so he lifted his katana from his sheath, holding it up side down so that when the fighters kick hit the sword, it hit the flat side of it which wouldn't cut him, despite the fact that the force of the kick was rather powerful. Arthano then dropped his katana back into his sheath and attempted to grab his opponents foot with one hand and spin him to the ground.

"I wish to find the true meaning of pain. But your efforts are... discouraging." Arthano sighed, wondering if the fighter might increase his efforts if Arthano taunted him enough.

Az felt his kick make contact with something, but it didn't feel like a face. It was small, and made of metal. Az was surprised how he could deflect a blow that easily. Yet, with his blow, he also felt the recoil. He was taken aback, and his foot hurt slightly. But soon enough, his foot was grasped suddenly, and he felt it being twisted. He took the force of that and used to his advantage. He pushed up with his other foot and swung it around at his opponents head, using the force from his twisting foot to help him out a little bit.

He wouldn't have known if it made contact, but he knew he was going to fall to the ground, contact or not. He heard the taunt, and grinned, not able to respond at the moment. He would wait a while until he had a little more control of the situation, since he was kind of in mid air when it was said. It was obvious to Az he wanted a good fight, but did he really want to get hurt? Az couldn't decide, but he realized he needed to pick it up a notch.

Arthano saw the reaction he got from his little taunt, and saw that the fighter picked it up, especially as a foot came flying straight at his face, sending him flying backwards. He spun around to keep on balance, barely staying on his feet and resisting the urge to draw his sword and kill the man. That was only made harder because of the man's connection with demons, something Arthano hated with a passion. It was ironic that he was to turn into one when he hated them, and yet Arthano wanted anything but to turn into them, for they were creations of chaos and darkness, of the shadow world in which all who entered, entered into their own oblivion.

"Ah... i taste the blood. It reminds me of... cherries." Arthano smiled for the first time in many days, many weeks, maybe even longer. It was odd that one might smile at their own pain, but how could he resist? Maybe if this man killed him he wouldn't have to turn into a demon. Maybe if he was killed in battle he could be freed from his curse and go to the place where those of the light go when they die.

But how could he be forgiven for what he had done?

Arthano charged at the fighter, drawing his sword in his right hand and holding it as though he were about to attack. And yet when he got within a few feet of the fighter, he sliced the ground, sending a large wave of dust into his face and circling behind the fight in an attempt at kicking him to the ground. But the idea had already been created, and Arthano couldn't resist the urge. He kicked up dust everywhere, slicing the ground, dashing around the arena until it was nothing but a cloud of dust with which he could only see his opponent because he made sure to focus almost completely on him.

"I... see... you." Arthano whispered through the cloud of dirt, his yellow eyes gazing through the dust at his opponent whom he only saw a faint outline of. "Can you feel me? Can you feel the chaos inside of me?" Arthano attacked from the dust, his sword sheathed and his fists flying towards the fighter before retreating back into the safety of the cloud. "Follow me..."

Az felt his kick make contact and felt a nice surge of adrenaline. He hit ground, and flipped up the second he hit. His guard was up and ready for anything. He gave Arthano a funny look when he smiled at the taste of bloody cherries. "Are you crazy or something?" He asked sarcastically, bouncing on his toes, staying warm and alert for any attack ready to come at him.

Az tensed up when he saw his opponent drew a sword, and suddenly knew he was going to get hurt. He waited patiently for him to reach him, but was taken aback at the cloud of dust kicked up. He let it surround him, not bothered much by it. It was a common technique used against him, and he had ways of fighting against it. He then closed his eyes, listening to his opponent circle around and kick up more dust. He used his hearing and sound waves to paint a mental picture of what he was doing. As his opponent circled him, he turned along with him, keeping his ears trained intently on him. He saw and heard every movement, and just waited for an oppotunity to strike.

He heard talking, asking if he could see him. "Yeah, I know exactly what you're doing. Stop talking. You might have a chance." He said with a grin, keeping his eyes closed and ears trained. He forgot about everything, the cheering crowd, bets placed upon him, defeated opponents, only his opponent remained in his mind.

He heard the sheathing of a sword to his right, and footsteps dashing at him. Time slowed down for Az, as he observed his mental picture of Arthano, just an inch shorter than Az, rush at him with a raised fist. He turned and blocked every punch that came at him. He suddenly grabbed the last fist and yanked it to him, sending a punch toward the man's chest swiftly and powerfully, the two momentums of the yanking and the throw of the punch making things painful.

Arthano could tell the man knew where he was because he had been rather loud about his movements. But he didn't care. Any pain the fighter could dish out Arthano would take with a smile, for he wanted more, enough to kill him perhaps. He didn't exactly know at this point, for he had been wondering how he wanted to go. It was only inevitable that he were to die before what he felt was his time, but what could one due when chaos itself had effected him as it had?

His thoughts were interrupted as the fighter grabbed his arm, pulling him forwards so that he may slam his fist into Arthano's chest. He felt his breath shoot out of him from the force of the blow, blood flying from his mouth and dripping down his mouth. "Yes..." Arthano whispered, recovering from the punch fast enough to also use the momentum that he had gained from being pulled towards his opponent, sending an elbow flying towards his opponents head, despite the fist planted firmly in his own chest.

Arthano could feel it now. He could easily tell that his opponent was a far superior fighter to him as well as stronger and faster. It seemed impossible that he even had a chance, but Arthano knew he had to keep fighting regardless, for only through death at another's hands could he be free of this demon's curse, but even so he wasn't sure, for it may very well simply speed it up.

When Arthano was convinced that the fighters grip on his arm was loose enough he also proceeded to un sheath his blade once again, attempting to hit the fighter in the face with the handle of his blade before jumping away, for he knew it was his weapon that would in the end be the edge he had over the superior warrior. Why had he jumped into this arena in the first place?

To get beaten to death? He supposed so.

Az felt his fist make contact with the guy's chest, and felt blood spatter on his arm. He didn't mind it, because there were other people's blood on his chest, and he was kind of used to it by now. Az was just kept in dumb wonderment how Arthano wanted the pain, and how he liked it when Az punched him. His blow came with what comes back around though. He felt an elbow drive into his face. His grip loosened, and he heard the unsheathing of the warrior's blade. He used the force of the driven elbow in his face to throw him to the ground and dodge the hilt of the sword.

He knew he was in for a good fight, and maybe he had the upper hand. He couldn't tell, but he knew he would have a tough time getting around when he drew his blade though. Of course he had experience fighting against weapons open handed, but the way he easily used his sword intimidated Az a little bit.

As soon as Az hit the ground, he swung his legs around in a swift attempt to swipe the guys legs from under him. He drove through, hoping it would make contact, and went through to bring the same leg up and make contact with his chest and slam him to the ground. Even if the guys legs weren't thrown out, he would try and kick the guys chest anyways. But he never knew what was in store with this man...

Arthano felt his feet be sweeped up under him, sending him crashing to the ground as he felt a foot come down upon his chest with such force that every breath inside of him shot out of his body. And yet even as blood slid down his chin and his body cried out for him to stop, he just got right back up. It didn't matter how much pain he was in, how badly his muscles burned, how hard it was to breathe, hard blurred his vision was, for he would keep fighting until he died or was knocked unconscious.

"More..." Arthano hissed, attempting to grab the fighters foot and swing him around with this adrenaline rush that had hit him. Even if the fighter tried to get up before Arthano grabbed him, he was already attempting to kick him as well, his eyes burning with the desire for death, the demon inside of him screaming out as it wanted freedom. He could feel the evil inside of him, the hatred that burned like an eternal flame that desire to devour this fighter who seemed to be at least part demon.

"I... want... blood..." The demon spoke inside of Arthano's head. He ignored it, and yet he felt the desire as well, the passion to destroy. If he ever gained the upper hand Arthano felt he would be able to restrain himself, but at this point he wasn't exactly sure. His blood was burning with such a passion that he felt he could endure far more pain than this and just keep on chugging along.

"Please... show me..." Arthano whispered.

Az had taken a little bit of recoil from landing ont he ground, and it obvioulsy gave time for Arthano to get up and grab his foot. He felt himself being swung around and kicked in the ribs, being sent flying a few feet away. He landed hard, and got back up quickly. He felt blood dripping out of his own mouth, and wiped it. He looked at it, chuckled and grinned, and got his blood flared up too. Hardly anyone had drawn blood on him, and now his demon side was starting to yell out to himself.

He charged at his opponent with demon speed, launching out with a side kick once in range. It was aimed right for his chin, where it seemed like he liked it the most. Right now though, Az didn't care if his opponent was with a curse, and couldn't help himself. He was just another fighter looking for a fight, another fighter from the crowd that wanted a piece. Didn't matter, they were all the same to Az. And, obviously, Az was a part of that crowd too, since he was out challenging the crowd.

Arthano was caught in the chin not because he wanted it, but because his opponent was so much faster than him. It was amazing to Arthano that he had even been able to fight this man, but he wasn't quite sure how long he would be able to stay conscious. Arthano watched as blood flew from his mouth, but also marveled as his face swung right back to where it was as though nothing had happened at all.

His opponent was faster, stronger, and possibly smarter than Arthano, but there was one thing that he knew he had that fighter didn't. A heart that would never give up, and sometimes that was all it took. Charging with his sword in his hand, sheathed so that it couldn't cut him, Arthano made it seem as though he were going to pull it out, but instead attempted to jam it into the stomach of his opponent before uppercutting him with his right hand.

It was an attack that wasn't very complicated nor was it meant to break bones, but if completely would most likely knock the breath out of his opponent. He would see how much endurance this man had, because he knew this battle would end up going to whoever could last the longest.

Az saw him coming after a fast recovery to a hard hit to the chin, and it was amazing to Az how he wanted it and yet could take it as if flies were hitting him. Not only was it a shock to him, but it was also fun too, if that wasn't weird...

He watched as his opponent charged, and brought his sword and sheath as a whole, and it looked like he was going to draw it. He came up with an arm about to strike down in a block to knock the blade away, but was caught off guard when the handle came to just jam him in the gut. It knocked the wind out of him, and to top it off, he was jammed in the face with an uppercut as he was bent over. He snapped backwards and fall onto his back.

He laid for a second wondering how he was going to beat someone willing to get hit but not willing to just stop and take it. Plus there was the matter where he could actually take all the hits given. He caught his breath fast, and snapped up to a standing position. "Lets get a drink sometime." He suggested with a challenging grin, and charged at him again. He jumped, spun and threw out a roundhouse kick at his face again, and followed up with a backkick to do another half spin. He set foot after his attack, still and always will be oblivious to knowing if he made contact or not.

Arthano smiled as his attacks made contact, sending his opponent to the ground. He would not resort to hitting a man while he was down, despite his strong desire to do so. Arthano grinned as the man spoke of getting a drink again and then proceeded to throw a roundhouse kick at him. He brought his arm up to block it but was still thrown from the force of the kick allowing the next kick to hit him in the back.

Arthano used the momentum that the kick gave him to roll forward before he got to his feet. Charging at the fighter once more, Arthano threw a flurry of punches and kicks, his sword still sheathed at his side, harmless against his opponent as he attacked with all of his strength, all of his speed. Arthano could feel his blood burning with the fire of the demon that resided inside of him, giving him strength, giving him power, and yet even as he tried to reject the power that it gave him he couldn't help but revel in it.

But that was not what kept him going. It was his own heart, his own light that kept him pushing, not the darkness that tried to overtake it. Only through his own determination could he trade punches with this man as he was now trying to do, for if he were to fall, it would only be because he had surpassed the limit that a man could go. For if there were one thing that Arthano knew, it was that his opponent was no ordinary man.

Az grinned as he saw Arthano make contact with the ground and get up. Arthano came at him fast, and threw punches and kicks, and Az did his best to block them. He blocked most of them, but a few would make contact, but he just absorbed the blows, as its not affordable to loose control when someone was on a rampage like this. Punches made contact with his face sometimes, and he felt kicks in his gut from time to time. His hands were occupied with blocking, and he kept trying to find a way to get through the oncoming blows and get him to stop somehow.

Az kept calm as he blocked hits and took them. Finally he just got tired of it and sacrificed a punch in the face to throw his own punch as hard as he could. He didn't know what fueled his opponent, but whatever it was, it probably had to be stopped. Az had started to believe something wasn't normal with this man, thinking that Arthano wasn't just out for a fight, but maybe to end something. Az would probably never know, since his punch would probably fuel his opponents engine even more. He felt blood trickle out of his mouth too, and just let it, since if he wiped it, he would probably get swiped with something.

Arthano grinned as many of his attacks hit their target, but he knew that the fighter was just looking for an opening so that he could unload on him. However, he only realized this once the punch had already leveled him. He felt his body crumple to the ground as he lay there, his yellow eyes staring at the sky as though it were going to swoop down and whisk him away to a far off land where he could actually beat this man in a fist fight, for that was definitely not here.

Somehow Arthano managed to roll away, getting away but stumbling as he did so. Everything was spinning as though he were falling from some great height. But perhaps this is it. Perhaps he was going to die and finally be free of this evil that grew inside of him, creating an abyss where his heart used to be. But somewhere in there Arthano could feel it, beating with just enough strength to keep him going, just enough to get him to stand up.

Arthano got to his feet, his yellow eyes staring at a man who would most likely end up killing him if he kept on going. And so Arthano slowly walked towards him, his hands held up as though he were going to fight. It was only when Arthano go close to the man, that he fell to his knees, everything going black as he went unconscious.

Az felt his punch make hard contact, his demon anger flaring at its peak, bursting out adrenaline 200%. He stood there a moment to watch his opponent fall and lay there a moment. Time was slowing down for him as he watched Arthano roll away and stand up, slowly creeping to him with his guard up. It all happened in slow motion as Arthano fell to his knees losing consciousness. He fell at Az's feet, totally out.

Reality snapped back in. He heard the crowd going wild, everyone on their feet and cheering for Az. He looked around as people went ballistic, and no one else stepped forward. He didn't want anyone else to step forward. He knelt down beside his fallen opponent, now having conservative feelings suddenly. He rested a hand on Arthano's head and muttered a sentence, "A hard fight never goes without loss."

Ignoring the crowd, he picked up Arthano in his arms, and carried him out. It was a hard victory for Az, seeing he just defeated someone who just wanted the pain, but he knew something was influencing Arthano to have these thoughts. The crowd was silent suddenly, and Az carried Arthano out of the arena and through the East wing where all of the lodging rooms were. He picked out a room away from people, and kicked the door in. It didn't break luckily, since the lock was halfway undone. He walked to the bed in there and set Arthano down, and let him lay to rest. "Rest here. I'll be back."

Az then turned and exited the room to get a few things to help out Arthano. He came back in a matter of minutes with a pitcher of water, a few rags, and a bit of food. He took a rag, dabbed it in the water and dabbed at Arthano's face, getting off all the blood and dirt. Then he took off his sword, and laying it by the bed nearby, since Az knew it wasn't comfy to sleep with a huge sword by your side.

Then he himself began tending to his own matters, wiping off the blood on his chest and arms and face. He had a lot of it too, going through three previous opponents before Arthano.

Arthano lay silently upon the bed, his eyes closed in restful sleep. He could feel nothing that the fighter was doing to him. He simply laid there, stuck in his own mind as he remained unconscious, and yet inside of himself he was once again having a battle with the demon who always seemed to want to cause harm to Arthano while putting on the show that it wanted to help him, somehow make him more powerful.

"I told you that you should have killed him. He knocked you unconscious and know he could be doing anything to your body. Your such an idiot, trusting a fighter like that." The demon cackled, its voice unsympathetic by all means.

"I never said i trusted him. I wanted him to kill me, so i didn't have to deal with you anymore. If I die then you die, and thats one less chaotic demon to deal with." Arthano spoke softly, his voice emotionless.

"That may be true, but you will never die Arthano, that is, until I'm ready for it. And then you will be reborn in the glory of Chaos, and we will become one. Isn't that what you want? Don't you want the power to be able to rule anyone and defeat any warrior? Even the fighter who just beat you almost to death?"

"No. I want freedom. That is all." Arthano spoke, his voice barely a whisper on the wind. He could feel himself awakening, his eyes opening slowly, but his vision was blurred. He thought he could see the outline of the very man who had put him in this state, but he fell asleep before he could confirm back to himself.

Az didn't know what was going on in Arthano's head. He was finishing up washing off his torso when Arthano spoke, hard audible, but clear as day. Az set down the rag and stared at him, thinking for a moment. Freedom? Maybe there was something in him restricting him, controlling everything he did. Maybe he had a demon inside of him too. Well, Az had one sort of, but his was under control. He was the demon, not some slave to a demon if that was the case.

He saw Arthano stir, awake a little, and fall back into unconsciousness. He walked over to the drawers nearby and opened them up, pulling out a shirt. He had left his shirt at the arena, and he was getting a little cold. He put on the shirt. It was a little tight, but what's a little showing off? He then walked over to the window and opened it up, letting in the cool dusk air, the setting sun spraying in golden light into the room. He sat in the window, leaning against the wall the frame was connected too, and propped up a leg. He rested an elbow on the raised knee, and watched outside at the commotion of the harbors, markets, and people. He didn't know when Arthano was going to wake, but he would wait until it would happen.

Arthano slumbered for what seemed to be an eternity, but what was really only hours. Whether it was the blow that the fighter had dealt or the demon inside of him that kept him in this sleeping state, Arthano did not know. And yet he didn't care, for he could feel the insides of his body burning up like a flame, and wondered when he was finally going to die. It seemed as though it would only be in mere moments, and yet the pain continued to rage on inside of him, getting hotter and hotter and hotter.

That is, until Arthano finally woke up, drenched in sweat from head to toe. He looked around to see the fighter sitting on the window sill, looking as though he were day dreaming or something along those lines. "Thank you... for your help." Arthano bowed a bit, lying to a certain degree for he had wished to die after all. "My name is... Arthano, and I am a wanderer. If any of that matters to you. Which i doubt it does." Arthano sighed, leaning backwards.

"You are indeed a very good martial artist. I suppose you must have been in many battles?" Arthano spoke softly, slowly moving towards his point. He had after all been looking for a creature with red eyes, and while he hadn't been quite sure if the man had them, he wondered if perhaps his demon heritage had led him to know one.

"Would you... perhaps... know of a creature or man of some sort with... red eyes?"

Az watched as many people came and went as the sun started to settle, a few he thought he had known from maybe a fight. How ironic was that. Maybe he just needed to get out for a nice time alone without any fights for once. Last time he tried that it sure didn't happen.

A few hours into his daydream, which was well worth it, since it was time to himself for a while, he noticed Arthano start to stir. He watched Arthano come back to life, and got up off the window sill. He immediately got a rag and soaked it in the water, and rested it on Arthano's forehead, seeing he was drenched in a cold sweat. "Hey, relax, you needed it. Otherwise everyone else probably would have killed you because I beat you. I don't let good wins go in vain." He said standing back a little bit, giving him some space.

"I'm Az, and I'm also a wanderer." He said with a smile and a nod. "There's nothing bad about knowing, just a few more facts about you, that's all. And there's nothing bad about being a wanderer either." He never really disliked wandering, it just gave him a free state of mind. That was something Az needed a lot to keep his own anger under control, otherwise he wouldn't be of neutral alignment.

He smiled a little bashfully at Arthano's compliment. "Well, not necessarily battles, but I've been in a lot of them, yes. Lots of fights, lots of academies mastered, knowledge enough to hold my own in a fight." He said, shrugging a little bit. His face twisted into an expression of contemplation, thinking of something with red eyes. Sure, he had seen a lot of red eyes, but that was when they were probably bloody. He shrugged. "I don't know, I've seen a lot of red eyes of demons, but it was a passive glance, not direct contact, if that's what you mean. Why? Know one of them?" He asked, walking back to the windowsill and leaning against it crossing his arms. He watched out the window for a while, then looked back to Arthano.

Arthano sighed. It was probably true that most demons had red eyes, and yet these had been so distinct, so... different. The only problem was, it had been so long ago that he had seen them and so he couldn't quite remember what it was that made them so distinct. Arthano sighed softly, coughing under his breath and feeling the sting of his lungs, a small amount of blood leaking onto his hand.

"Az... I'll have to remember that name." Arthano spoke softly, smiling. The next time they fought, Arthano wouldn't be nice enough to not use his blade. The next time they 'sparred' it would be because Arthano wanted to be defeated, for as much as he wanted to die, he also wanted revenge. And for all he knew there was a cure to this disease, this plague that he had been infected with. All he needed to do was find it.

Easier said than done.

"I thank you for your help, but you don't need to stay here if you have things to do. I am quite capable of taking care of myself, even in injury." Arthano's voice was soft, a whisper on the wind. But that was naturally how he was, not because he was hurt. Even as he spoke he could feel himself healing, as though he were so in tune with his body that he knew everything about it.

Perhaps he did.

He shrugged with a chuckle. "Yeah, its not hard to remember. Its only two letters." He said with a friendly grin. He saw a little bit of blood drip out of Arthano's mouth and walked over to him.

He listened to his excusal for Az, but Az didn't mind. He laughed a little bit and said, "Ah, I don't have anything better to do. I need to brush on my medical skills anyways. Are you still warm?" He asked, taking off the damp cloth on his forehead. It had warmed a bit, since it wasn't as cool as it was before. He squeezed out the water and soaked it in the cool water again. "We wanderers don't have much to do. Right?" He smiled whole heartedly. He didn't, other than getting himself into a fight or some sort of trouble. "Even ones more than capable enough of taking care of themselves could use help from time to time. And I believe this is one of those time to times. I kicked your butt out there, and I almost feel bad for it. Its almost like you just stood there. You could have just drawn your sword and jabbed at me at the last moment, and you surely would have beaten me." He said, tossing the rag in his hands, from one to the other.

Arthano smiled a bit as Az asked him if he was warm. He needed to brush up on his medical skills? Did that mean he had been getting into a lot of fights lately? Arthano shrugged at his own question, not willing to ask him if anything had been going on. He didn't seem as though he had a care in the world. No problems, no evils chasing after him trying to kill him. But for all Arthano knew, this mysterious man was simply good at hiding it.

Arthano sighed softly as Az spoke of how Arthano could have easily beaten him. He simply wasn't willing to speak of his blight, for he didn't want to put any pressure on such a man to help him. It was such a thing that seemed as though only the gods could cure it. "I had no reason to kill you, so why should i have?" Arthano spoke softly, even though he doubted it would have been that easy. This man obviously at least had some sort of connection with demons, which made him powerful with or without a weapon.

Actually, it practically made him a weapon in himself. Arthano wondered what he held back, what magics he contained within him, but decided not push for it. "Sometimes when a man has nothing to live for and the end seems close, he tries to speed it up." Arthano smiled a bit, shrugging at his own oddity.

That was the thing. Az didn't have any cares for the world really, and he didn't have anything bad coming after him, so what was he to worry about then? Maybe a few bargain bosses would come after him to put him in a fight, but he would just blow then off, no matter how much bank they offered him. And he didn't have anything to really hide, since he was pretty straight forward with what he did and said.

He shrugged at Arthano's question. "Well, one would have an instinct to kill if they wanted to survive. I mean, any longer with taking hits, your body would eventually shut down for good." He stopped, listening to his comment. Speed the end up? Heck, Az would slow it down, even though he too didn't have much to live for except for a good adventure or a fight. "But maybe a man wants to see what he missed, so he goes and slows it down." He responded back to it.

Maybe Arthano did have a reason why he bluntly took all the hits. Did Arthano just want to end it all? All of these ideas brought sympathy upon Arthano from Az, but he didn't show unless he really wanted to. Az had heard it before, so he brushed it off as another one of those occasions, unless it turned into something extreme, like being under some control of a demon, which didn't seem likely. Az chuckled at that thought...

Arthano sighed softly, laying back to make himself more comfortable in his bed. His yellow eyes stared at the ceiling, as though hoping it might suddenly open up and swallow him whole. Obviously that would never happen, but sometimes he wished something like that would. Something weird, something interesting. Ha... an interesting way of dying. Arthano would have never thought something like that was possible until he became infected with this parasite of a demon. But now, it was something that he wished for, something that nobody should have to think about.

"I suppose your right. I only wish i had such an option. But its fine." Arthano paused, sighing once more. "I've grown to accept that death is only inevitable. Nobody can escape it, even the immortal elves, for eventually something shall happen, and everything goes black." Arthano continued to look at the ceiling as he spoke, wishing this wasn't true but knowing it was.

Arthano tilted his head a bit so that he may gaze upon Az. "Even so, you should use your time wisely. You never know when your end may come, depressing though it is." Arthano spoke in a mere whisper, his strength still drained. It was as though he could see hundreds of ways in which such a powerful man like Az would die, and it made him feel terrible, for he could do nothing about it.

He nodded, listening to his words. "There's always an option, you just have to be able to take extremes sometimes. But yes, someone dies no matter what." He said, contemplating the concept for a moment. He had come close a few times, but it was really dramatic. Az would rather die in a huge way, rather than something small that would make it 'just another death'. But that was his big ego thinking, so it didn't matter.

He never took his eyes off of Arthano, and shrugged when he was told to use his time wisely. "I know. If my end comes, it comes, and I can't do anything about it. Its just something you have to accept." He paused, thinking if he say should say the next thing or not. He decided to. "Though with the way you're giving this advice, it sounds like you're going to have a hard time doing so. Is this true?" He asked, a little curious, and found it to perhaps be a little opportunity to get a little insight on Arthano.