ORIGIN

It was more of the same, but no less exciting. She leaned forward, eyes darting between the two fighters. She flinched, but--ahh! A dodge, swift, and Ace made it look almost easy; and here came more banter. A thrust of the glaive (that will never hit-) but OH, the beam of blinding light mde even Shrike flinch, though it wasn't aimed at her.

Her wings flared, then settled, as she rocked back from the light and then settled again.

And along with it came information. She didn't think that either one of them, ferocious enemies that they were, were necessarily good sources of true information. But it was interesting to hear nonetheless, and she wondered how much truth might be in these words. The 'House of Chaos?' The 'eons-long home of survival and creation?' These made her wonder; made her think.

Was there more to it than opposing magics and opposing philosophies? Was it a case of intruders and a 'home ground?' And--why?

"I didn't know you two had that much of a history," she offered. Not to distract--no. But they both seemed capable of talking and fighting, and maybe they could elaborate a little while they tried murdering each other. She was curious, after all.

And it seemed she might be signing up for more than just Order or Chaos; it seemed almost like the two had entire belief systems behind their combat types.

Shrike found herself deeply amused. They'd gone for metaphor--pebbles and beaches--and then abruptly swapped metaphor, now to roots.

It was funny. Like they couldn't settle on one--or rather, The Warden couldn't, in particular. She sort of wanted to make her own, to toss out a cool new secret third metaphor, and see if they grasped her humor. But... quick thinker she was not, no more than the other two, and she found herself at a loss.

Oh, well.

Mental shrug. Moving on.

She was honestly too hung up on the fight, anyway, raptly watching each movement: the subtle rake of claws through mane, the sudden lurch forward and skilled thrusts of the Warden's glaive. She could squeal, it was so fun to watch! If she could learn to fight like either one of them she'd be pleased.

Of course, Ace seemed to be the better choice for Shrike in particular: flying combat, without a weapon, would suit her far more than trying to pick up a knife on a stick or whatever it was that Warden was using. But she imagined Chaos must have at least one idiot with wings.

And if not, and she joined them--well, she'd be a first, at least.

Shrike looked between the two. She felt that the fight, honestly, had been quite close. Both combatants were clearly skilled and relatively experienced, despite the few clumsy mishaps here and there. And she'd hate to leave with new enemies, truth be told. Perhaps a bit of flattery-?

It seemed that, of the two, Chaos had won the day. Despite nearly faceplanting at the start, the centaur-esque creature had still managed to blind the multi-eyed aerial combatant. It's a shame, she thought, and voiced the rest aloud as she turned toward Ace: "I would have liked to learn from you." A moment's pensive thought as she looked between them. "It's a shame that you're enemies, too." There weren't any bars in the caves. If there were, Shrike might've asked them if they both wanted to go grab a drink after this spar. But... she doubted they'd have accepted.

Hell, the Warden was essentially threatening her life, now, which earned it a sharp and dour glance. "Tsk," she said--actually said--"that's no way to treat a new ally. Let's try to keep it more civil?" The suggestion was made archly, her tone and demeanor somewhat haughty as she pushed up again from her position as spectator. Her wings flared, and she looked again to Ace. "Thank you both for indulging me. I think I must gauge the winner to be-..." Oh.

She stared for a moment at The Warden.

"What was your name?"

That... would probably be a good starting point.

She'd heard it introduce itself as "the Warden of Draco," but that was surely just his title, and she hadn't caught its name.