Having been taken under the wing of the black market king pin in the Capital of Valland, also known to her as the King of Thieves, Razhiel was quite versed in street ways. First, she shed her imperial attitude. The regal air, chin tilted just so as she stared down her nose at you, disappeared. Her attitude becoming more of a cocky confident as it was abhorrent, in her opinion, to back down from something. Second, she went by the nickname originally provided by the streets of Valland, Raz. Third, lose the decent clothes and high end weapons. Fourth, get into trouble. Being street was not only surviving it was a way of life, you lived to survive and survived to live. Having snatched a missing poster, she went to talk to the parents who created it. An ordinary house in an ordinary neighborhood, with annoyingly nosy neighbors. Her tolerance of civilization was wearing thin. Too many towns, too many questions, too many smells, too many noises. Too much of everything and nothing of the one person she was actually looking for. Sparks ran up her hand, which caused her to pause mid-step right before she reached the door to the house indicated on the poster. Violet eyes glared at her hand as if it had a mind of its own. After this mission she would take a break from her tracking.
The door opened before she started for the door once more. A balding man with a mustached whose face seemed to be in a permanent grimace stood within the open doorway. “You are trespassing.” Razhiel said nothing just stared at the man. Her less than impressive clothing and street appearance forgotten. Her gaze unflinching, the longer she stared the more imposing she seemed, pulling a mantle of status around her. The ending expression much like one looking upon an ant. A drop of sweat dotted the man’s forehead and he changed tactics, ”May I help you with something?”
Without a flicker of a change in her expression she replied, “ I am actually here to help you. Your son is missing. I will find him. I will bring him back to you alive though not necessarily unharmed. But first I need you to tell me his full name, what you believe happened to him, when you last saw him, and any changes in his behavior.” Despite her stating she was there to help, the man seemed to sweat a bit more. Pulling a handkerchief out of his pocket, he dotted his forehead. ”My wife and I last saw him a week ago. He went out to meet some friends… by the library. His name is Daniel Hunkipillar.” The man seemed to cower in his woolen sweater. Razhiel pinched the bridge of her nose. “You are lying. I went out of my way to come to this stuffy neighborhood and be affronted with your moth ball smell. Tell me what you know so I can find him and bring him back.” The man’s mustached seemed to quiver a bit. “We think he has been fighting. He comes home with bruises. Last week he had a cut above his eye. I overheard him talking about making fast cash in a ring.” Razhiel gave the man a once over before replying, “Fighting… Okay give me forty-eight hours and I will be back with an update.” Turning around she continued, “You may want to get your excessive sweat looked at, doesn’t smell healthy.”
Walking down Magnolia’s main street, Razhiel kicked up dust as she ambled along. If the boy had stated the library, she would be that was the area in which the arena was held. It was just a matter of getting in. An alley just past the library had brawlers in it, fighting for what Razhiel was not sure. It didn’t matter. Razhiel jumped into the fray, spiked red hair sticking out as she closed in on a guy and delivered a jaw cracking punch. Someone jumped on her back sending her stumbling slightly. Without thought, she fell backwards and heard a satisfying outtake of breath. Standing, she turned just to dodge a fist aimed at her face. Her fist flying to meet the stranger’s stomach, standing she grabbed his head and his face met her knee. Down he went. Dropping on top of the man, another flew right where she had stood. Standing she slapped the arm away of another. Pushing him away as the one who flew over her, ran at her. Bending, she rammed her shoulder into his stomach and flipped him over her shoulder, succeeding in throwing him into the guy she pushed. Standing once more, she turned to someone clapping. Green eyes, dark hair, rugged appearance. She gave him an appraising glance. “So what are you doing in a fight of men, random girl.” Dusting off her hands, Razhiel replied, “Its not in me to pass up a good fight. Name’s Raz.” It was the green eyes turn to give her an appraising glance, in which she returned with a raised eyebrow. Zak… Come on, you’ll fit in. I can’t wait to see Dudd’s face.”
Shrugging she followed him to the back of the alley. A coded knock, the door opened and they descended stairs upon stairs. Zak opened a windowless door. Razhiel was hit with a strong smell of body odor, sweat, and an undercurrent of blood. “Hey Dudd!” A man in sweats and bandaged ribs turned at Zak’s call. He seemed to be coaching a red haired man. Walking over to the pair of them, he grunted “What do you want Zak?” Blue eyes taking in Razhiel while talking to the other man. When he met her eyes, she made it obvious as she gave him a once over that she wasn’t impressed. He harrumphed before turning to look at Zak, who pointed at Raz. “ I found ya another contender. And she’s a scrapper.” Dudd looked stupefied before he started laughing, a deep down in the gut type of laugh. “This…” He gestured with a hand to all of Razhiel. “Pretty little thing, a contender? For what? The pretty princess pageant?” Before Zak could reply, Razhiel had grabbed the hand that Dudd had pointed at her, pulling with a little more strength than necessary. As he stumbled her way, she slipped to the side, twisting his arm behind his back, holding his wrist in such a way that it would cause immense pain for him to get out of the hold she had him in. Leaning in she said in his ear, “I’ll be your Princess… But only if you get on your knees and beg me.” With the last of her words she kicked the back of his leg, efficiently knocking him to his knees. Zak was guffawing, arms around his stomach. Razhiel let him go and stepped back before Dudd could retaliate. Rubbing the wrist Razhiel was holding, he slowly stood and shouted to the others in the room, “Get back to work.” Eyeing Razhiel, “Okay Princess, you can dance in the ring. Tomorrow night. I hope you get your ass handed to you.” With that Dudd walked to a board and added the name ‘Princess’ to it under a number of others. Razhiel smirked. The name was fitting. Zak interrupted her thoughts, “So if you want you can stay in one of the rooms here. Follow me.” Without waiting he walked off, Razhiel following close behind. “I can’t say that I’ve seen someone move that fast before. I hope you can use magic as well as you can scrap.” Thoughts scattered much like rats in the light. “This is not just a boxing ring?” Zak looked back at her, bemused. “No. Anything goes in the ring. Any style of fighting mixed with magic. I will warn you though, every contender has magic so if you don’t fit I’d leave.” Razhiel snorted. “I think I’ll fit in just fine.”
Zak opened a door to a very plain, very small room with only a bed and dresser adorning its floor. “Here it is. Bathroom is down the hall… I’d be careful if you decide to wander… Anyways, good luck tomorrow. I’ll be betting on you.” With a wink at her, he walked off. Razhiel watched him curiously thinking he had gorgeous green eyes. With a stretch, she stepped into the room, closing and locking it before collapsing face first onto the bed. Without a twitch, she seemingly passed out.
It was a dream. Just a dream. Darkness, lit by sapphire orbs, overlapped by golden eyes. But they were not human. They stared at her. Intense. Overwhelming. She couldn’t breathe. The darkness so solid, she could not be sure she were even in existence. Golden orbs engulfed by flames until nothing remained in the darkness. A roar. A call. She strained to hear. A spec in the distance. Suddenly a red dragon flying above her. The darkness giving way to a stormy sky speeding past her. Lightning. Flashes of light bouncing off red scales as the reptilian monster lifted its head and roared flames so intense she could feel the heat. Lightning strikes, touching the dragon. Wings spread as if to embrace the burning light. Its head turned, golden dragon eyes turned upon her. Unflinching, unwavering. She was drowning. She was lost.
Razhiel woke with a start as she hit the floor. The coolness of the wood pressed against her cheek. She stayed there, upon the floor, until her breathing slowed and she could attain some semblance of normalcy. Lifting herself up, she noticed scorch marks on the floor. Hard lines set upon her face. Looking upon her jacket she cursed the oracle who had given it to her. Parting gift my ass. More like a damn curse. I’ll burn something down before long if these dreams continue.
She spent the remainder of the day getting her business taken care of and wandering the underground facilities. It was quite impressive. Razhiel knew Asal would appreciate something like this. With that thought brought an intense feeling of longing. Squashing it she went into a workroom and did a few warm ups between boxing sets and various kicks. The few unfortunate souls who did bother her ended up with either a healthy dose of respect for her or an unforeseen nap.
The evening found her in one corner of a ‘cage.’ The other held a man of poor appearance with quite the height but offset by his rather round middle. A shame to red heads asunder. “Our first two contenders, I give you Sue Liz versus Princess!” A bell rang indicating the start of the match. She wasn’t sure where the others powers lie. Going with her gut she taunted the other man. “Sue Liz… Your parents must have truly wanted a girl. Not only having a female first name but Liz?” Razhiel shook her head, “People must wonder… about what your packing…” She was cut off by his animal sounding yell as he launched forward. Power and magic clung to the fist he threw her way. Stupid. Not just a frontal assault but one accompanied by a noise to inform the target of your intent. Razhiel ‘s hand glowed and sparked, as she met his fist with her own lightning punch. The result was a rebuff of sorts as both were sent backwards. Interesting. Landing on her feet, much like a cat, Razhiel launched forward. Though Sue had landed on his rump, he lifted his hands in which vines sprouted. They wrapped around Razhiel, effectively immobilizing her, and Sue crowed with delight as he got to his feet. Having worn a sleevless shirt and went barefoot, the vines touched a moderate amount of her skin. Before he could come closer, his body dropped into convulsions. Violet orbs alit as she stared at him. His convulsions recessed as the vines dropped from Razhiel’s body. “The victor of this round: Princess.” Taking a bow, she walked out of the cage. Sue was alive, just unconscious.
[/b] “We have a seasoned veteran this round folks. Please welcome back Rusty Tygart. And in the other corner we have our newest sensation- Princess!” [/B] As the bell rang Razhiel heard Rusty snort “Seasoned… I am not a damn vegetable.” Cracking his knuckles seemed to be his starting signal as he rushed Razhiel. With a spin, much like a dancer, Razhiel dodged to the side, Rusty bulldozing past her. Without seeming to stop he merely turned and kept rushing her. Using her enhanced strength and focusing her lightning upon her bare foot, her leg snapped up at just the right moment and made impact with Rusty’s cheek. He was knocked down and to the side. Standing, he shook his head. The lightning having little effect on him. Rusty punched the ground, a shock wave affecting the surrounding area. Knocking Razhiel to the ground with the after effect, Rusty used the moment to pin her. The close contact allowed Razhiel to press her cheek against his. His Earth magic having a certain resistance against hers, she sent a more concentrated jolt to his heart and frazzled the neural pathways to which kept his heart beating. Core Mortem. Rusty went limp against her and with a shove, Razhiel knocked him to the side. Using her fist, she hit directly above his heart sending a much different type of jolt into his body. With a shudder, he gasped and inhaled.
Standing she bowed as it was announced, “Watch out folks this Princess’ touch is deadly. “ Not much time passed before she stood within the ring once more. “Two young talents face each other in our third round. Darkened Daniel vs Petrifying Princess. Place your bets now, I have a feeling this fight will be electrifying.” Razhiel looked to where the announcements were coming from. Green eyes so deep it reminded her of the forests within the mountains, met her gaze. She shook her head slightly at Zak’s grin. The boy she was about to go to battle with spoke of street from his clothes to the confident look upon his features. The bell rang and the arena was cloaked in darkness. A flashback to her dream and golden slanted orbs appeared before her. That brief moment of distraction and she was flown backwards a hard hit to her center. She began to cough as she rolled over. A laugh behind her had her eyes narrowing and the full brunt of her power brought to the surface. She tasted his magic and it was unclean. Jumping up, a feral smile greeted the young man, her canines showing as lightning burst from her body in her own ranged attack, lighting all within the arena. The lightning hit Daniel and he stumbled back, darkened bolts flying from his fingers as he shook off the remnants of her magic. Razhiel strode forward, lighting bursting from her own fingers, the magics canceling themselves out. Lightning unfurled from her left hand, to reveal a lightning whip. With a flick of her wrist, the end of the whip curled around his neck. “Argggg.” Was all Daniel could say as he attempted to pull the lightning whip from his neck only to find it impossible to grab without further shocking himself. His eyes began to roll in the back of his head and in a last ditch effort he grabbed Razhiel’s free hand. Darkness claimed her vision, a tendril curling around her heart. Power blazed with Razhiel, lighting engulfing her entire body until she was almost incorporeal. Violet orbs pure white tinged with blue. The hand Daniel held suddenly gripped his, breaking his bones as he screamed. Razhiel’s other hand absorbed the lightning whip as it shot out and wrapped around Daniel’s neck. Lighting poured into his body, effectively dismissing the darkness and sending Daniel’s body into convulsions. He began to froth at the mouth. Keeping herself in check, the lightning vanished, violet orbs returning to normal. She let his body drop to the floor, eyes cold as she looked upon him.
“And that is what you call an electrifying end folks. Give it up for Princess!” A roar from the crowd had her looking up. Zak was looking back at her thoughtfully, Dudd behind him giving her a ‘not bad’ expression. Lifting up Daniel and tossing his form over her shoulder she walked out of the ring. Walking up to Zak she said, “Keep my prize. I came for him.” A grin was the reply she got. Without knocking, Razhiel pushed open the door to the Hunkipillar home. She was greeted at first by a screaming Mrs. Hunkipillar and a shouting Mr. Hunkipllar. Which soon turned into exclamations of ‘My son. What happened? My poor boy.’ Razhiel snorted at the last and started up the stairs, pushing doors open until she got to the one she assumed was his and dumped him unceremoniously on his bed. His parents rushed in and began to care for him. Going to their kitchen she helped herself to water and what she assumed was what they had for dinner.
Someone cleared their throat as she was washing down her dinner with a glass of water. Finishing she asked, “Can I help you?” The moth ball of a man was wringing his hands before holding them still and saying in a no nonsense voice, “While you found our son and brought him back, which we appreciate, that does not entitle you to ransack our house. Here is your payment, you may leave now.” With that he placed some jewels on the table and stared her down. Her respect for the little man rose a few notches. “I ate some of your food, that is hardly ransacking. Considering what your son has been playing at, that is the least you could do for me.” Razhiel stood, wiping her hands on a towel before moving away from the table. She heard Mrs. Hunkipillar come down the stairs. “Your son was partaking in a magical underground fighting ring.” Mrs. Hunkipillar gasped as they both denied their son knowing magic. Razhiel cut them off as she looked them both in the eye. “Participating in magical battles is nothing. But to use dark magic. And to use it to attempt to kill someone… “ She took a deep breath and pulled upon her cloak of regal air. “If I so much as catch him practicing dark arts again, I will kill him. I don’t give second chances lightly. Do what you must to ensure it does not happen again.”
Grabbing the jewels she climbed the stairs to have a final talk with Daniel. Walking into the room, brown eyes met hers defiantly. She gave him a predator smile as she leaned in until they almost touched noses. “Being paralyzed is a b*tch. That should wear off eventually… I know you won’t give away who taught you what you know. But realize this: I will kill you if I so much as catch you sneezing dark magic. And I will have fun ripping apart your body, watching as you die.” Her voice a low growl. Turning to his opened window, she put a foot on the ledge. With a muttered, “The audacity…” She jumped and disappeared.
