Atlas Gym, Fandom Fight Club [Sunday Evening]

[atreideslioness]

There was a poster tacked up on the door to the main gym, with the following text written in alternating handwriting, as if the marker had been shared between two people:

Rules of Fandom Fight Club
1. What happens here, stays here. We can't keep the squirrels out, but if somebody tells you something on the mat, you don't repeat it off the mat.
2. No weapons or powers unless everyone knows in advance and is fighting within their weight class.
3. No shoes.
4. If someone says "stop" or goes limp, the fight is over.
5. Two people to a fight.
6. Fights go on as long as they have to.
7. No tourists. If you need to take a week to see what this is like, cool, but no coming back just to watch. You wanna watch, get a TV; here, everybody fights.
8. No fighting if you're sick or injured. You wanna screw up your body, you do it on your own time.
9. The organizers reserve the right to remove you from the club at any time for violation of these rules.

Underneath the sign was a table with a sign-in sheet, where people could print their name and if they'd fought before which is handwavey since y'all already did it, which would be collected once the meeting started.

Inside, Tyler was pacing, barefoot and holding himself so erect he looked about three inches taller than he normally did. He clapped his hands in a way designed to silence anyone still talking.

"Welcome to Fight Club," he began. "In this room, you are not a teacher or a student or the guy who works behind the bar at Caritas. You are not what you own or what you wear. You are not a special, unique snowflake. You are a body. You hit, you bleed, you feel pain, you cause pain, you come back for more. You get better. You might even find redemption."

He glanced at the group as if daring anyone to argue with him on these points.

"The purpose of this group is catharsis and self-improvement through unarmed combat," Ghanima said briskly. For once, she was not wearing her usual ornate gowns, but a simple woven tunic and slacks and was barefoot like Tyler. "There is absolutely nothing wrong with therapeutic violence - no matter what the armchair shrink of the week says - and this place is here to provide you with that option."

"That said, should you wish to have a friendly spar with someone using practice weapons, you should feel free so long as both parties agree. Please refrain from using actual weapons until you've worked with someone more than once."

"And while we're being the buzzkill jerks with all the rules," Tyler said, "here's a quick gym tour. Padding's over here -- beginners, wear gloves, everyone else, it's at your discretion -- practice weapons are there, and these soft blue things? These are mats. We fight on the mats."

"Speak for yourself," Ghanima murmured, bemused. "I may occasionally be evil, but I am not a jerk or a buzzkill."

"Now, my favorite part. We're going to randomly pick some fights." It was possible Ghanima looked a bit too gleeful about this. "You and you. You two. You two too. You and you, and hrm, you, and ... you." There was practically a halo over her head as she pointed at Tyler. "There. Get to know your new friends, then get to know the mat. Anyone I didn't just pair up, find your own partner."

[Up early for massive SP! Wait for theMassive OCD is massive and up.]

ETA:You people are breaking my browser! Mingle | RNG Fights | Open Sparring | Ghanima and Tyler | OOC | Next Week's RNG

Comments

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

"Only in Vegas," Algren noted with a grin as he stooped forward and ran for Sokka, shoulder first, in an attempt to plow the boy to the floor. He was short, yes, and he wasn't exactly a powerhouse, but why not try anyhow?

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[sarcasm-guy.livejournal.com]

Sokka blinked at the shoulder, and waited until it was too late to try to dive out of the way. He ended up clear across the mat in a tangle of limbs, but wasted no time in climbing back to his feet. "And what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, right? You didn't bring the bees back with you?"

Every instinct in him was screaming that this was the time to throw something, but he didn't have his boomerang, and that wouldn't have been allowed anyhow. Instead, he settled into a defensive stance and watched Algren warily.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

Algren managed to catch himself and turn around before he ran off too far, and then turned to face Sokka again.

"If the bees followed us back, they're doing an excellent job of hiding." He was trying to sound reassuring, but it wasn't entirely clear as to whether he was stressing this point for Sokka's peace of mind, or for his own. "I would like to think that when I go out for vacations, I leave the dangerous situations behind me when I come back to work."

Defensive stance or no, he was going to get up close and try to swing another punch, this time for Sokka's gut.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[sarcasm-guy.livejournal.com]

Sokka was ready for it, and was only grazed a little as he jumped back.

"When you come back here?" he asked. "This is Fandom."

A bit sore at having been run over a few moments ago, Sokka gathered his legs under him and sprang at Algren's stomach, trying to tackle him.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

Algren caught the tackle right in the gut and staggered backward, digging his heels into the floor in an effort to stay upright. And then he twisted around as best as he could, trying to get one arm around Sokka's head.

The sparring match had now shifted to grappling, apparently.

"This is Fandom," he agreed, trying to get some air back into his lungs, "and that's why I'm here, getting some practise in."

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[sarcasm-guy.livejournal.com]

"Good idea," Sokka grunted from under Algren's arm. "Practice is good." He tried to ignore the whole head-being-crushed thing and instead wrapped one arm around Algren's to hang on with while the other fist rammed as hard as it could into the man's side.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

Oh, that was going to leave a bruise.

Algren grit his teeth and made a face, tightening his grip with the blow and falling to his knees. If his grip was tight enough, his hope was that Sokka would go down with him.

If it wasn't, then the boy was going to be able to wrench free, and Algren would find himself on his knees. Which had serious potential to get bad fast for the man.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[sarcasm-guy.livejournal.com]

Sokka made the mistake of trying to keep his feet under him while Algren went down, which did NOT go over so well with his neck. So, he ended up sprawled awkwardly in front of the man, head still trapped, and a bit woozy from the whiplash. Not good. He brought his hands up to Algren's arm and tried to claw free.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

It was an admirable effort, really, and Algren felt his grasp loosening at Sokka's attempts to free himself.

So he was going to do something he really, really wanted to do. He was going to make a fist, and, provided Sokka didn't get out right away, he was going to bury his knuckles against Sokka's scalp and rub.

Noogie.

Sometimes, he enjoyed this fighting stuff entirely too much.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[sarcasm-guy.livejournal.com]

"Hey! HEY! HEY HEY HEY! Ow! QUIT IT!"

Sokka scrambled backward out of Algren's grasp and rolled to his feet, losing his hairband along the way. He brushed his bangs out of his face and glared. "You mussed the hair!!! Oh, it's ON, biznatch!!!"

He launched himself forward again, fingers clutching for Algren's shaggy locks.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

"Bizn-" Algren was cut off when he felt Sokka's hand yank at his hair, because, while it was a perfectly fair sort of reaction, it wasn't entirely anticipated, either.

So. There was Algren, on his knees, with his hair being yanked on by a high school kid. Which would be humiliating if he wasn't still somewhat amused that he was in this situation in the first place.

There really wasn't much he could do in this situation except swing, was there? And so that was what he was going to do.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[sarcasm-guy.livejournal.com]

The punch caught Sokka right in the gut, knocking the air out of him. He coughed, and then growled. And yanked harder on the hair, because he could.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

Algren grit his teeth as his head was yanked backward, and then he did the only thing that really made sense at the time.

He grabbed for Sokka's hair, too, dammit.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[sarcasm-guy.livejournal.com]

"OW! Quit it!"

Sokka kept yanking on Algren's hair, as hard as he could, and brought his free hand up to try to protect his own hair somehow. "OWWWWW!!!"

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

Algren wasn't going to let up, no so long as his own hair was still being pulled. And he wasn't going to use his free hand for anything but more punching, because that really seemed like the best way to get the boy to let go, at this point.

"No, I'm not going to 'quit it.'"

On his knees and in a hair-pulling contest while punching at a kid. Yes, this was mildly embarrassing. Especially for a Captain formerly of the Seventh Cavalry.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[sarcasm-guy.livejournal.com]

Okay, more punching? HURT. A LOT. Not as much as the hair, maybe, but still a lot. Sokka stopped trying to fend off the hand pulling his hair and instead grabbed for Algren's hair with it as well. Then he brought his forehead down as hard as he could while pulling Algrin's head upwards at the same time. This always worked well in the movies.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

Algren hadn't ever seen a movie like that. Which is possibly why he made the mistake of looking up just as Sokka's forehead came smashing down into his face.

The result was a bit of a sick crunch that resonated through his head, and a suddenly very bloody nose.

Which didn't really deter Algren much, except that he was now letting go of Sokka's hair and was pulling himself to his feet, aiming his next punch for Sokka's face. Because with all the hair pulling and hitting the mat, really there would be something the matter if their faces didn't match somewhat.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[sarcasm-guy.livejournal.com]

Sokka was bit woozy -- the movies never mentioned how much that move HURT -- so he wasn't nearly prepared enough for the incoming fist and he staggered backward with the blow. "Your NOSE hurt my FOREHEAD!!!" he complained, as he raised his fists and watched Algren warily.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

"You're the brilliant individual who aimed his forehead for my nose," Algren snapped, spitting a mouthful of blood out onto the mat, mixed company or none. He was going to smother in it if he didn't get it out of his mouth. "I'm inclined to think you can suffer a little for it."

His own fists went up again, and he was breathing through his mouth. It was kind of difficult to breathe through a broken and bleeding nose, after all.

A beat, and then he grinned a bloody grin. "At least we're not resorting to hair-pulling anymore," he added, dryly.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[sarcasm-guy.livejournal.com]

Sokka wiped the blood from his own nose and chuckled. "Yeah. Pulling hair. Heh. You're such a girl!"

Then he swung a fist at Algren.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

Oh. Oh. Now it as on.

Algren stepped back from the fist that was swung at him, and then lurched forward again with a kick aimed for Sokka's knee, ignoring the blood that was dripping in small rivers down the front of his shirt.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[sarcasm-guy.livejournal.com]

Sokka lifted his leg, catching the kick on his shin. He lost his balance and fell over sideways, still a little disoriented from all the abuse his beautiful head had taken. "Hey, that's MY move!" he protested. "I do that!!!"

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

"Well, now I do it too," Algren replied tersely, lurching forward again, in a dive for the boy on the floor, and if that worked, then he was going to try to press his elbow against the boy's neck. Keep him down. If he was on the floor, he wasn't swinging his head all willy-nilly into people's faces, after all.

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[sarcasm-guy.livejournal.com]

Oh, right, he should have rolled out of the way. The elbow in his neck made that VERY clear. "I have you at my mercy now," he grunted. "You can't possibly hope to win this. Do you yield?"

Re: Fight Three: Intermediate: Algren/Sokka

[shiroi_tiger]

Algren just kind of gaped at him for a moment, pressing the elbow a little harder against Sokka's neck. The blood from his nosebleed wasn't letting up any, but he was doing an admirable job of ignoring that for the time being.

...

"Are you serious?"