The Ranch

Arena (3)

The onlookers immediately recognize the man's strict voice as a cold sweat pours down their backs. Some of them have never heard the man yell and don't know what happens when he's this angry. A few of the older spectators have lived on this island longer than the rest have heard rumors about a time when the man was so angry he yelled, and the hell the came with it. They recalled the outcome of the man's rage and shivered.

It had to be said, reputation is a big deal on this island, good or bad, and a major influence of reputation are the rumors surrounding a person. Of course, the rumors have to be 'special' enough to be passed around and have an actual influence. So in a way, having bad rumors about you is just as impressive as having good rumors. Although, most people would rather have the latter, bad rumors are much more interesting and spread much faster.

One of the Kings of bad rumors just happened to be passing by when he noticed a commotion. The Arena has strict rules regarding fighting, one of which states that fights aren't allow outside of the stadiums. He thinks to himself,"Really. Is it so hard to walk a couple feet to your left and pay a few kquil to fight on one of the stages?" There were arenas built specifically people who had grudges or unresolved business. The new recruits might not know this, so they can be let off with a warning, but the older soldiers should know better.

Believing this to be an obvious show of disrespect to the rules, anger rose through the man's body as he yelled into the crowd, silencing everyone,"You think this is some sort of show?" His beady brown eyes were covered by his glossy gold-rimmed glasses, but the onlookers could somehow feel the man's intense, giving them a cold sweat. In a strict, low voice that left no room for discussion, he dishes out his punishment," Fifty laps. NOW."

Without wasting any time, the crowd quickly disperses, running for their lives, leaving only the main people involved and a couple more gossipy people that hid behind the corners.

The man's booming voice cleared Axel's mind somewhat and the mounting pressure helped Axel regain some of his composure, he became aware of his surroundings and felt the dull aching of his body. He grit his teeth in discomfort, but stood up straight, putting on a fragile smile that could crack with the slightest touch.

Tih and Kai were also familiar with the voice, although they had never heard the man sound so angry. They turned around and Kai exclaims,"Instructor Maddox!"

It was only after the crowd dispersed that the instructor was able to get a good look at the situation. He was surprised to find two familiar faces. "Tih and Kai?" He analyzes the situation in front of him. Two newbies unharmed, one newbie worse for wear, a clerk with a broken cotton candy stand, and a group of newbies a little further away. It can be assumed that they are friends of the injured recruit.

"What's going on here?" Instructor Maddox wanted to get all the facts straight. He was a firm believer in justice and discipline, and wanted to hear both sides of the story before he came to any conclusions. Just because he favored Tih would not make his final result biased.

"Instructor! That guy suddenly jumped Tih and attacked him for no reason!" Kai defended Tih as he pointed at the unfamiliar Axel. "After Tih dodged his attack, he fell into the stall and it broke. We didn't retaliate and remained defensive." Kai talks up a strong argument in the little amount of time given. His convincing words sway the crowd that secretly watching.

Instructor Maddox nods his head to show that he understood before turning to the injured but calmed down Axel,"And you?"

"I-I'm sorry sir, I don't know what came over me...I have no excuse for what I did. I will happily receive the punishment I deserve..." Axel's mind also works fast, as he came to the conclusion that the only way he would be able to get out of this situation was to admit his mistake. Of course, this doesn't mean his vengeance has been quenched. Axel still feels like slugging the expressionless child before him, but he forces himself to put on a 'puppy that knows his mistake' expression.

Instructor Maddox takes both of their statements to heart, believing both to be sincere, and comes to a conclusion. "It's good that you are willing to admit you're mistake, but rules are rules, and the person in the wrong still has to be punished. A hundred laps, an apology, plus the cost of the stall will come out of your own wallet. That is all."

"Damn..." Axel thinks to himself as he quietly grits his teeth. He was too impulsive and impatient. What damn apology?! Did that monster ever apologize for cutting my ear off!?

A couple seconds pass as Axel refuses to move out of spite. Kai, who wasn't complacent with a mere apology in the first place, annoyedly yells,"Hey! What are you waiting for? Are you trying to back out from apologizing after how you just acted towards Tih?!"

As his white fists clench into balls, Axel tries to rein in his spite. He looks towards Tih and, with an innocent smile, sneers," So your name is Tih now, huh? And you've even got a loyal pet with you? How nice. I'm guessing he doesn't know the real you? If he did, he would be standing twenty feet away from you right now." As he continues talking though a clenched jaw, a bulge of vein starts to creep up his face.

"What are you talking about? Stop talking bull!" Kai instantly defends him, but he didn't take any actions to stop Axel from continuing.

"Soldier. Please refrain from spreading any...unsavory rumors about another." Instructor Maddox also cut in. He was personally aware of how damaging bad rumors could be to one's reputation.

Axel twitches when he hears those words, his smile becomes wider and a little crazier as he counters,"Rumors? Why Instructor, everything I've been saying has been the absolute truth. Of course I don't blame you for not knowing what kind of monster is in front of you. I, myself, was an unsuspecting victim before I was able to realize."

"Monster...?" Kai repeats as his eyes narrow. He glances at Tih, who's expression hasn't changed, if anything, he doesn't even seem to be paying attention to their conversation. It's not that Kai was unaware of the strange vibe Tih exuded when they first met, he just chose to ignore it. He tended to depend on his instincts, and the moment he walked on the bus, his instincts were telling him to get on the kid's good side and after hanging around him more, he's grown slightly attached to the child. But this and that are two different things. If befriending Tih gets his killed, then he'll detatch himself as soon as possible. Some would call this survival instinct. Nothing is above one's own life. We're human after all.

Instructor reacts to Axel's words differently. This island has its fair share of "monsters", ones much scarier than human imagination can handle, so hearing the word come out of the soldier's mouth didn't surprise him, it instead peaked his interest. The 'crazier' newbies tended to have more potential. There are cases in the past where they were highly sought after by all the major Instructors. But not everyone was willing to take a chance on them, they were, after all, 'crazy'. It was mostly a game of luck and the first person to discover a potential 'monster' is the luckiest, because they have the first opportunity to sign an apprenticeship with the 'monster' and train them themselves, or if they thought they couldn't handle and control the 'monster' they could recommend him to other instructor's to gain favor from whichever instructor wants the 'monster'.

In Instructor Maddox's case, he's already familiar with the 'monster', which will help him, but ultimately, his decision will depend on exactly how 'crazy' Tih is. "Exactly what did he do?"

"HE-!"