The two fighters faced off against each other. At this point, there was no backing down; not without looking like a coward or an idiot. They might’ve been idiots to some degree, but Casper and Rakkan were certainly not cowards.

“Alright!” A man between them shouted. He was a stocky Blue Macaw, wearing a worn out suit. Similar to the merchants of Tracks, he was a traveler as well. He had volunteered for the part, claiming to have an experience as a boxing referee back when he lived in an Imperial City. “Here are the rules! Nothing permanent! I don’t want to see anyone have their eyes gouged, their ear drums destroyed, their balls ripped off, or their throat bitten out! We have Ascendants with skills in healing, so don’t be afraid to give it your all! The game is won when the opponent is no longer able to fight or they concede! But that isn’t happening is it?! Is that clear?! Now get ready, shake hands, and throw down! This is the truest and most passionate way that two Qestians can speak! With blood, sweat, and tears!” His voice was powerful, loud, and didn’t even need a microphone. Each word spoken with dramatic passion. This certainly wasn’t his first role as a referee, that was certain.

As a former turntable, used by trains to switch tracks, was allowed to function as an arena, plenty of room too; given, the tracks on it, as well as any machinery were removed. The railing encircling it would also work as a top rope, for one to bound or jump off of. The two fighters met in the center; by the suggestion of Rakkan, both of them were shirtless, making the contrast of their musculature even more obvious. The Lion extended his hand, a wide grin on his face, overflowing with excitement. Despite being roughly a foot shorter than him and not quite exuding the same powerful energy, the Sphynx gave off an aura of great confidence. Someone who wouldn’t back down or hesitate from any challenge, no matter the consequences or the difficulty. Shouts from the various merchants were heard, all of them taking advantage of the large crowd to sell their wares. In the crowd, Casper also spotted the Hyena, Trace, sitting on top of a bunch of barrels. In her lap she had Casper’s gun, having been trusted with it.

“Keep your promise?” Casper asked his opponent, taking his hand.

“Believe me, Skinny! Rakkan always keeps a promise!” Rakkan gripped Casper’s hand tighter. Very, very hard, as if on the verge of crushing it. It was when Casper realized that he wasn’t letting go, preventing the two of them from parting, that something was wrong. “Now then!” With his free hand, Rakkan pulled his arm back and trusted forward in a vicious palm strike, slamming his hand right into Casper’s face. With the downward momentum of the attack, the Sphynx’s knees immediately bent and buckled. Head pounding, dizziness setting in, he was open for further assault! In one fluid motion, Rakkan swung Casper around like a burlap sack, the centrifugal force sending him tumbling and rolling painfully away from the center of the arena!

Casper lied still for a while, the crowd was silent, most of them wondering if the fight had just now ended in the most anti-climatic of fashions. Cho, losing interest, immediately brought out his Ninshubur board to play a game against himself.

Yet, a grunting sound noise broke the silence, his head still pounding, Casper was back on his feet. Other than a red spot on his face where he was hit, he wasn’t visibly injured. The spots where he struck the ground glowed with a pink light, the same light from earlier. Forcefields. Small, each of them no bigger than a dinner plate, but incredibly sturdy, enough to bare the brunt of such a painful landing. While he preferred to use his trusty fire arm, at he core of his being, he was an Energy-based Ascendant.

From the sound of the crowd’s reactions of surprise and awe, Rakkan’s claims of the crowd loving him weren’t unfounded.

The Lion, still grinning, clapped twice, laughing loudly, “Ar har har! That’s where your strength comes from! Defense and offense as one! Show me that punch of yours? I want to feel it again!” Rakkan puffed out his chest, he roared. A loud, resounding roar that could be heard throughout the entirety of Tracks and further beyond. Even drowned out the cheers of the crowd.

“Oh, I will, you walking…” Casper grimaced, then stopped himself as he tried to think of a proper insult for Rakkan. A walking slab of meat? Such an insult wouldn’t work on someone who was so evidently proud of his muscles. So, instead of trying to find the right words, Casper only leaped forward with no further bravado, He swung his fist forward, striking his opponent in the chest. Followed by another. Then another right after that. Each punch burst and crackled with a small, concentrated energy. A forcefield directly in front of his fists, amplifying what was an admittedly weak punch. Each hit caused the Lion to flinch. Casper was actually causing him to be pushed back!

But, Rakkan only put a hand to his mouth and yawned, exaggerated like everything else he did. “What are these?! Raindrops!? Let me show you a real punch!” With a shoved, Rakkan pushed Casper a few feet back, then pulled his arm back, winding up for a punch.

Casper’s reflexes were quick enough to ready himself for the punch. As Rakkan swung his fist forward, Casper put his arms up in front of him to block the punch. Layered over for extra defense. The energy shield cracked and broke under the force of the fist, before bursting in a powerful flash of light. The light was accompanied by a strong, yet harmless, shock wave that could be felt by the audience and the two fighters, blowing through hair and clothes. The two fighters skid back away from each other, both catching their balance.

Still only mildly paying attention to the game, Cho was the only casualty of the shock wave; not physically, but the pierces of his board game were scattered. “…Alright then…” He said, trying to to swear.

To be infected with the mysterious disease, Arborpathy, was to force one to live a life constantly staving off their illness with a prescription of Life’s Blood. But, in exchange, those infected were capable of casting a form of magic, referred to as Versus. These people were known as Ascendants. These Ascendants could be further broken down into four types. Casper was an Energy Ascendant. The manipulation of light. The creation of hardlight constructs like Casper’s shields, blades and beams of energy, and even the power to imbue things with said energy. Often lacking versatililtiy, it made up for it in pure destructive power. Casper’s hands sparked with with the same bright pink light that contrasted on his black and white skin.

Rakkan, on the other end, was an Enhancement Ascendant. The ability to enhance ones body. While great strength and stamina came with being an Ascendant, Enhancement specialists took this even further. Even greater strength, even greater stamina, greater healing, and even the power to alter the very cells of one’s body with a mere thought.. Rakkan’s body was already strong before his infection. A man who had trained since his adolescent years. His already impressive strength was only further honed by his powers.

Once the two of them regained their balance, the force of the shock wave subsided, they now stood on opposite sides of the arena. Casper took a deep breath and gently hit the sides of his head with his open palms. He was already dazed from each of Rakkan’s attacks, yet the Lion didn’t even look the least bit hurt. He only had a handful of seconds to think up a strategy that would give him an upper hand in the fight. As Rakkan started to move towards him, he only had a hand full of seconds before they would be forced to brawl again. Defense wasn’t an option, as he could only barely endure his attacks. To be on the offense wasn’t an option either, as it felt that he couldn’t even damage him. Think, Casper, think, he shouted to himself in his head.

But now, the time for thinking was over.

Rakkan, having gained a good bit of speed, jumped at Casper. Twisting in the air, flying like an overly muscular missle, his attack was a spinning dropkick. Both feet struck Casper’s thin torso at once; in his head, the only thing keeping his chest from being completely collapsed in ward was the shield that he placed. But, the attack was immediately followed up by another strike, not from Rakkan, but from the railing behind Casper. Casper’s back struck it hard. Having not expected it, this strike wasn’t blocked by a shield, prompting the Sphynx to collapse to his knees. Casper had fallen!

Gasps were heard from the audience, the referee even approached the fallen Casper, to check on his condition. Rakkan got back to his feet, handing landed a bit rough after his own attack, and put his arms up to signal to the audience; he was riling them up. All the sounds from the audience, whatever Rakkan was saying, he couldn’t hear any of it. It was all white noise to him.

“Casper?!” The Macaw said, speaking just loud enough but also quiet enough, to be heard only by Casper. “Can you keep fighting? If you are seriously injured you need to withdraw!”

“Ar har har! What’s wrong, Skinny? Too much for ya?!” Rakkan shouted.

Casper looked up at Rakkan, who now had his eyes off the audience and focused squarely onto him. Not once had he ever dropped the smug attitude. Condescending attitude, even. He honestly couldn’t stand these types of people. The word Casper was looking for was something along the lines of betrayal.

But, the Lion steadily approached Casper, walking with a graceful prance contrasting with his large build, then whispered something into his ear. “Did I go too far with that? The Kayfabe?” Strangest of all, his tone was one of genuine concern.

“Huh?” Casper raised a brow, as Rakkan pranced back away, not giving him a chance to answer the question. Casper didn’t recognize that word… But his mind began to parse what it could be. The insults from earlier? Even the dirty tricks that he pulled at the very start? The pain of each punch and the exhaustion that followed with each skirmish, that was certainly real yes.

Yet everything else? Was that what Kayfabe was?

Casper got back on his feet, wobbly like a newborn. The cheers of the audience being the only thing he could hear. The referee stepped away without another word. “Alright. Let’s go another round. But I think I get ins and outs of this whole game.” He punched his fist into his hand for emphasis, “Sorry, but all be taking home the win.”

Just like before, back when he was shooting cans and quoting movies, he used an overly dramatic tone. Putting on a show for everyone else.

Rakkan nodded, and prepped himself up for another loud roar, taking a deep breath. “Love to hear it! Then come on and take it from me! Casper!” He roared. If there was one thing that his fans loved, it was that loud loud roar.