B A T T L E ! final round
The low, golden sun lit up the meadow in patches, illuminating the dust that still lingered in the air from the last match. The beads of sweat that ran down Rufio’s temples told Bandit the obvious: he looked as tired as Bandit felt. Coming into this Battle back-to-back from the previous match could either aid or hurt Rufio, he figured. Though he was technically still catching his breath from his last fight with Echo, he was also already warmed up and ready to go. Bandit had the edge of a moment’s rest, but it was a double-edged sword: taking that time to sit down also made him realize how exhausted he was. His muscles began to ache, and his whole body began to feel heavy.
Thankfully, there were ways to win other than solid strength. All he had to do was bait the bull–wave the red flag and watch him run. If Bandit played his cards right, by the time Rufio realized what was happening, he’d be on the ground and bleeding.
“You sure you’re ready for this?” Bandit called, digging his toe firmly into the ground where he stood. “You took quite a beating out there. Wouldn’t want you to embarrass yourself.”
For @ragelost
"You're embarrassing yourself enough for the both of us," Rufio snarls back, fists clenched and raised immediately. Adrenaline still ran through him fast. Damn Echo, but he was kind of proud of her for how much of a fight she just put up. Not that she'd ever know.
Still, he'd have to be a bit cautious about this. He and Bandit get into enough scuffles for them both to know that this one, this one is a challenge; Rufio might have the physical strength to his advantage, but Bandit is a close second, and fast and clever beyond it.
So he's not rushing into anything. He's taking it slow and steady, taking in Bandit's body language, his positioning. He tries to stay light on his feet as he begins to circle the other boy.
"Got any last words, Bandit?"
"Anything you want me to pass on?" If Bandit's going to try to get into his head, Rufio's doing the same. "I can be a messenger if you're fucked up too bad to talk after this."















