Relic let the win roll off her back as another cycle passed. The Unbound Champion had fallen here, in the dust of the forum. Another corpse to the pile, Oilstone shards to scatter to the cave's winds. Saran'zol was dead and she had helped put him down. Whatever.

Everything fell into that deep, yawning emptiness sitting somewhere in her ribcage, like she was hungry. Enough wandering. Too many cycles spent doing fuck all.

She'd sent word through the Task Force, a request for the Overseer to just... Hear her out for a couple minutes. Nothing too serious. It was more of a formality if anything, if Tectus didn't want her in Orion she'd haul her circus elsewhere.

Relic scratched at the dirt idly, making shapes and thinking back on the Blacksmith's painting. That was someone who'd done something with his eternal life.

@Tectus

She'd taken up the roll of watchman lately. It was a job not needed, really, and quite beneath her in the regular hierarchy that she was used to but, well, it felt right. Felt like she was doing something. And she was watching out for someone.

As soon as she saw the gleam of the lights against metal, she turned from her spot upon the tower and climbed down the many stone stairs to the base. She had been expecting Relic and was interested...did she intend on joining their ranks? She could not lie, she was excited for the possibility. A fighter of that prestige would be perfect.

She emerged from the entrance of the tower and stepped up to the hyena, not getting too close so she wasn't towering over her. "Relic," she rumbled. "Good to see you. What is it you wished to talk about?"

@Relic

The Overseer was not hard to spot amidst Orion's dim, dusty grey. When the distance was small enough, Relic nodded to Tectus as she approached.

An old nerve flickered to life, a small note of alarm - you are alone with someone much, much larger than you - but that wasn't a problem anymore, and she'd proven that twice - three times now. Relic had a right to feel safe, to know that whatever threat she'd face, she'd meet it with twice the teeth.

"So. The arena." She turned to circle it, trotting briskly past the empty seats. "It's ancient, older than me. Maybe you, even? And I'm thinking, it's almost pristine, and it feels like a secret. I think that's a shame." Relic tightened her circle, before settling back in the centre.

"I've seen the backstage. I know that this place was respected, once, like the rest of these caves. So I say - what if we brought it back to life? The gladiators, the blood, the glory. It saw some of it, these past cycles. I think it could see a lot more, and I'm willing to put the work in to make it so; With your permission, of course."

Relic sat on her haunches. "I'm thinking something fun. Someplace you could train the Task Force, maybe even the Forge. Whatever kind of fight you want, its here. Seats open to anyone. Some rules. No dead babies, and the like."

"But I'm not... Reallyy one for politics." She itched an ear with a talon. "We'd be neutral, I think. For the people. Which might mean allowing Order to participate. Or keeping Chaos out. Whichever. I am kind of curious to see how those drones fight, myself."

"And of course, I'm bringing this to you since... You're kind of in charge of this cave. The Forum's yours, the Tower's yours. You can change whatever you want about it, take it off my paws - err, claws. But I'd want to stick around for it, if it happens."

@Tectus

At first, the Overseer looked like she was getting more and more interested, leaning forward ever so slightly as Relic rattled off her thoughts. She was nodding - yes, yes the arena was ancient, and it was shame to be in such a state. The fighting ring returning, in any form, would be a genuine joy. It felt like a piece of the old days - a GOOD piece of it. But then her expression froze and did not get any further interested.

She humored the thought, at least. She gave it that much. But no more.

She stood upright and sighed. "This is a great idea. You are right, this arena could see a lot more. It would certainly do much for morale. But...I cannot allow you to put on games in which Order participates here in Orion. Regardless of your feelings on the cave politics, it goes against what the Task Force stands for and what the caves were built for. Their very presence here is an alien influence. Besides, should they be allowed to participate, do you think that they would simply come for the fun of it?" She blinked and shook her head. "They would only come to collect info on us. To learn our numbers and capabilities and find weaknesses. I can't risk them having that kind of advantage, not when we are in a constant and active effort to stamp them out."

An ear twitched. "If you are curious to see how they fight, seek them out yourself or hold a ring elsewhere. But they will not be allowed here for leisure while I'm Overseer."

@Relic

Sent from [my ipad]. The Enlightened Centrist would like a Few Words

Relic’s tail flicked, the only indication that the Overseer had hit a nerve, or something equivalent. She could’ve left it at no, she could work with that, easy. But the justification made something in her twitch. There was a tiny straight a student in the back of her head, eagerly raising its hand to speak.

”Mmmmmmmwell… Speaking girl to girl here. I know that Chaos has the home advantage. I’ve worked with them, I got a kid in the Forge. No problem there, per se. I’m sure the caves were full to the brim with Valkhounds-and-whatevers what, 1,000 years ago? No clue how many cycles that’d be.”

Relic felt a pang, realising that she wouldn’t dare to talk like this a year back. Getting your shit kicked in does wonders for your self confidence, we suppose. ”But things changed, and you weren’t here for them. Chaos has Draco and Cepheus. Order has Ursa and Gemini - for now. As I see it, everything inbetween is still neutral ground. And in the interest of neutrality, I don’t want to bar anyone from competing due to faction. It’s bad sportsmanship.”

”And like, until you, or some other Overseer, or a Master even, run into Ursa and actually exterminate whatever’s pumping out those ant-things, it’s not Chaos’ cave. There’s probably still pockets of fungus in Orion.”

”I’m making this for the Gembound who came after you. I’m asking for your blessing because I respect your work, and your authority. But if I favour Chaos in this project, then we lose sight of that vision.”

A smile crept onto her voice. ”… We could settle this in the ring, if you want.”

@Tectus

How disappointing that Order had so deeply infiltrated the minds of the gembound to the point in which they were arguing on the Hive's behalf to exist. To be normalized. Tectus didn't want to allow the Hive here, she shouldn't. But she did want Relic's favor, and it would please her quite a bit to see the forum opening again.

They could compromise. They could come to an agreement.

She considered it for a moment before coming up with a last justification - "Imagine if you built a big a home for yourself and your family, and you all left for a while. When you returned, a bunch of people had taken up living in the house. Most of them are nice and respectful, so you let them stay. But then more people take up residence in one of the rooms while you're there, people that you know and don't like. You ask them to leave, you try and force them out, but they refuse to go. And they keep messing with your house, breaking things, getting in the way. Uninvited squatters in the house YOU built, claiming they should be allowed there too." She grunted. "Those are not the kind of things that should be welcome at events together. And this is not simply a matter of leaving one out or factions or fairness. Chaos and Order are simply incompatible. If they fight, they will kill each other."

She glanced off in the direction of the Forum. "But...I respect the gembound. I respect that these caves have belonged to you for quite some time now while we were absent. I can compromise. Invite neither - chaos nor order - to your fights. And in the interim, I'll confer with my Masters, if Order should be allowed to participate."

She looked back to Relic. "You must understand - should both show up, it will no longer be friendly fights, regardless of where they are hosted. There will be blood."

@Relic

There was a new kind of fire burning in Relic's belly, set alight by her apparent inability to lose. Tectus' play at her sympathy came across as matronising, though it wasn't all rational thought driving her responses. Her claws itched. Her tongue swiped at her teeth.

"Some family of yours." She shot back, but she settled into quiet shortly after.

She flexed her wings in an approximation of a shrug. "Not all fights are friendly. They don't have to be, so long as its all agreed upon beforehand. I've been smashed into a chrysalis in this forum before, I won't deny others that thrill - or not completely."

"Hoping to bring some fighters into the fold to help manage things, for when there's cases where we do have to intervene."

@Tectus

The shot at the house of Chaos was perhaps meant as a light insult, but Tectus merely snorted, amused. "I didn't say they were a functional family." She was self-aware enough to know the mess that they were. It came with their nature of chaos. They would not be particularly functional or nice members of society.

But a bit more interest piqued as Relic continued. She considered it. She really did. Her own bias towards wanting to get the forum open again, the Deathmatches restarted, were just too interesting, too tantilizing to resist. "Hm, so beyond friendly fights, then. Proper Deathmatches? ...Did you happen to participate in their revival? I was, unfortunately, still asleep." Her greatest regret. How could she have MISSED it?!

She stared at Relic for a while, letting two sides of her thought process fight it out. Because she very much wanted the forum to open again, and she liked Relic. Respected her. But she was loyal to the Master and the house of Chaos, and they desired order eradicated, completely. She was the Overseer here, yes. And she, personally, wanted this to happen.

Agh...

Tectus grunted and shifted her stance. "Listen, Relic. There is no chance any of the Masters would allow Order to fight here. Or anywhere, really. If any of them found out, they would turn up and kill them on the spot. I don't think Order would be stupid enough, anyways, to turn up. But..." She eyed her. "Beat me in a fight and we can maybe work something out. Just between us." Fuck, this was close to treason wasn't it? But Tectus really wanted Deathmatches.

@Relic

That rebellious, emboldened spirit quelled some as the Overseer sank closer to her level. Good. That's all she'd ever want from her, really. "Friendly, unfriendly, and training opportunities for both. There's plenty of people out there who don't know how to properly defend themselves."

The careful imitation of a professional adult dissipated some. "The revival? Like... Someone's tried to do this before?" Embarrassing if true.

Relic ran into the wall of not having a real face anymore, again. There was no way to speak honestly in a way that wouldn't come across as offensive - hopefully it'd be harmlessly edgy. "Okay, so, not only are the Masters hopeless at getting rid of their problems, but they're also allergic to fun. I'm impressed that they can't pick a struggle."

She hopped from paw to paw in a little anxious dance, aware of her fighting words but unwilling to stop them. "Someday I'll hire someone smarter than me to figure this out. No biggie. But for now-"

Relic would take her up on that offer. The terms hadn't been set, so she played it safe by not jumping straight to teeth, instead bursting into a gallop towards Tectus' legs, hoping to catch her off-guard and off-balance (a high stakes gamble.)

ROUND 1/?

ATTEMPT: attempting to trip over a brick shithouse
DEFENSE: armour, enchanted helmet
INJURIES: none yet

@Tectus

"Ah, nothing so grand as a revival. A one-off thing, is what I've heard," she corrected, dismissively. And with a bit of disappointment. Even a singular revival of her beloved blood sports would have been exhilarating to participate in.

She snorted at the comment and shrugged without commenting. She wasn't going to lecture on something obviously meant to be a joke, but it wasn't exactly about what was "fun". But Relic hit a bit of a sore spot for her superiors - no matter how hard they tried, they just couldn't get rid of this Hive.

Indeed, Tectus had not exactly laid out an rules or stipulations, mainly because she did not see Relic beating her in a traditional sense. Purely on size factor alone, the hyena But if she could best her in skill and survive against her for long enough, well then...she would consider her worthy enough to make this kind of extremely dangerous deal with.

As her opponent shot towards her legs, she didn't particularly look prepared. But she had been waiting for her to make the first move - she'd watched her closely during the olympics and the fight against Saran'zol. And if she were the smaller one, a grab towards her legs might be the thing she start with, if she were foolish enough to make that challenge. She stood casually as she always did, watching closely as she fearlessly barrelled towards legs that were nearly as thick as she was tall. She definitely has guts.

It was a surprising strength that slammed into the Overseer, enough to actually cause her balance to waver, so she quickly followed it up by leaning into it, to allow herself to fall, just right on top of Relic.

She was not trying to crush her. She would like that to be noted. She was absolutely not intending to crunch all her bones.

ROUND 1/?

ATTEMPT: fall on top of her
DEFENSE: really really big
INJURIES: none

@Relic