It does not bother Mircea terribly much, the idea of fading into the background here, prowling through the shadows of the Hollow's caverns. He is still what he has always been, after all. The ghoul lurking in the dark, preparing always for the moment he is beckoned out into the light. Whether he is to be a sword or a shield does not matter so much - the war horse serves his kin dutifully regardless.

But is it enough?

The patrols, the hunts, the endless cycle of training that so often occupies his days - it's all fine work, he knows. But as the slowly cooling air draws ever tighter with tension, Mircea feels that the time has come to do more. And for that, the beast knows what steps he must take next.

His dappled form lumbers into the low light of one of the Hollow's larger caverns, his pale face near-glowing through the gloom as he raised his skull high, jaws parting wide on a great roar that echoed throughout the mountain labyrinth. A call for any one bold enough to answer him, to test his mettle so that he might test theirs in turn.

It was to be expected that any who held the title of Gentry must first prove themselves worthy, was it not?

Mircea vs. ???
For OH Gentry
Round 0 / 3

ART BY MOOGLE, CODE BY DEE

Waste no worry for the world

Let it be a tragedy of love and glory

Okay, so, maybe she'd been a bit of a background figure recently, but that was getting boring. And, anyway, she'd been thinking about making a move of her own, so when the call echoed out she rose and stretched and shook herself out before following it to the source. Which happened to be an unfamiliar face, but maybe that was more her fault than anyone else's.

As she drew closer, though, the difference in size became apparent. He had a few inches, and more than a few pounds, on her, but...well, what the hell. Hey there big guy," she called out with a grin as she approached, slipping into a defensive stance as she paused a few feet in front of him. Wanna dance?"

Even if she lost it should still put her on the radar, right? Maybe a little more effectively than doing all the tedious bullshit like hunting and patrolling?

Curse vs. @Mircea
OH Gentry
Round 0 / 3

while they wait by gates of pearl

we'll be building palaces in purgatory

code by corvus

He is not left to wait for long before another pale face joins him in the gloom, accompanied by a pair of gleaming red eyes. He's not particularly familiar with this dark-furred woman, though she has the looks of a fine opponent, striding towards him with a confidence that matched her sizeable build.

Her words confirm that she has come to answer his challenge, and Mircea dips his head in respectful acceptance with a hint of a smile upon his lips. "As you wish." A dance it shall be then.

Wiry muscles tense and flex as the ghoul gathers himself up to begin his charge, angling the point of his right shoulder forwards in an attempt to slam it into the center of Curse's chest as the distance between them rapidly closed. His left forelimb would swing upwards with the momentum, seeking to slam his large paw against the ribs just behind the woman's right shoulder and shove her further.

Time to see how nimble her steps truly were.

Mircea vs. @Curse
For OH Gentry
Round 1 / 3
Hits:

Rolling 8d20: 11 + 2 + 17 + 1 + 12 + 8 + 3 + 6

Dodges:

Rolling 4d20: 17 + 11 + 15 + 8

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 2 + 5 + 18 + 20 + 3

ART BY MOOGLE, CODE BY DEE

Waste no worry for the world

Let it be a tragedy of love and glory

He didn't waste any time with posturing or talking, and she could appreciate that. He'd only get a step or two before she was moving forward to meet his charge. At the last second, she would shift toward her own left, so that his shoulder would meet her own, right sides colliding as the beginnings of bruising blossomed under skin and his paw smacked into her side. Rear limbs braced against the impact, her right front paw rising as she tried to bring it down hard on his own right front toes.

This was really only for a rank, so she'd hold back against the urge to attempt real, lasting damage.

Curse vs. @Mircea
OH Gentry
Round 1 / 3
Hits:

Rolling 5d20: 15 + 8 + 5 + 11 + 17

Dodges:

Rolling 3d20: 8 + 10 + 19

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 6 + 13 + 2 + 11 + 9

while they wait by gates of pearl

we'll be building palaces in purgatory

code by corvus

She possesses some skill indeed. Mircea hasn't quite closed the gap before @Curse surges forward to meet him, the bony collision of her shoulder against his sending the heated flush of bruising pain rippling through his chest and down his right leg, a fire creeping quick and quiet. The stray foot that stomps down on his toes serves as the exclamation point. A pained snarl curls his lips as his balance wobbled and pitched towards his right, his paw instinctively recoiling from the crushing pressure though his other forelimb was quick to try to plant itself firmly against cool stone in correction.

Yet he would take advantage of how his skull was pitched downwards with the movement, attempting to snap his jaws around Curse's right forelimb to yank it forwards in retribution.

Why should he be the only one knocked off-kilter?

Mircea vs. @Curse
For OH Gentry
Round 2 / 3
Hits:

Rolling 8d20: 12 + 9 + 17 + 10 + 6 + 1 + 5 + 18

Dodges:

Rolling 4d20: 8 + 17 + 1 + 4

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 3 + 5 + 7 + 15 + 20

ART BY MOOGLE, CODE BY DEE

Waste no worry for the world

Let it be a tragedy of love and glory

He wobbled and she'd take a step back and toward her left to put an inch or two of distance between them to avoid being pushed off-kilter herself. When his jaws came at her forelimb, then, she'd shift it further back so that fangs would clip the front side of the lower portion, rather than grip - a low rumble that may have been excitement and may have been frustration coming as skin parted between his teeth.

With his head still down, her own jaws would turn and try to land fangs at the right side of his face - either in the general area of the ear or the eye, but she wasn't actively aiming at the latter for such a low-stakes scuffle.

Curse vs. @Mircea
OH Gentry
Round 2 / 3
Hits:

Rolling 5d20: 4 + 11 + 8 + 6 + 2

Dodges:

Rolling 3d20: 1 + 7 + 10

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 3 + 16 + 8 + 13 + 6

while they wait by gates of pearl

we'll be building palaces in purgatory

code by corvus

A familiar voice weaves through the air, telling a song of challenge. Of ambition. Celestia is pulled from her resting quarters simply from curiosity alone. @Mircea yearned for more and she wanted to see who would rise to challenge him. Albeit it would have been herself had she managed to find him quick enough, but alas another would rise to greet him. @Curse seemed plenty capable and when Celestia did arrive the fight was already well underway. She would move to sit and observe, eager to see who the victor would be. Her mahogany gaze would flit from one individual to the other, watching their movements with intensity and interest.

Her reflexes are sharp, and his teeth do not sink into the meat of her forelimb like he'd hoped, but merely leave shallow slices across ebony skin before his jaws clamp shut around empty air. Just the barest hint of crimson is left to smear across the elongated tips of his canines, and yet Mircea can taste it still.

That single, tempting drop is all he can taste, suffusing his mouth while his throat muscles clenched and watered with the urge to have a proper taste.

Perhaps it's for the best that he'd not been able to take a bite.

Within the next breath, he feel's Curse's fangs dig through his mane to nick his ear, sharp points leaving shallow tears down his left temple as he reflexively tossed his head, attempting to drive her pale face away by knocking his larger skull into hers.

Having shifted his paws to reclaim some semblance of balance, he would throw his right forelimb up, seeking to drive his paw into the junction of Curse's neck and left shoulder and shove her off to the side.

The 'final blow,' one could say, for the growing burn in his muscles suggested that the end of this was finally drawing near.

Mircea vs. @Curse
For OH Gentry
Round 3 / 3
Hits:

Rolling 8d20: 15 + 14 + 3 + 1 + 2 + 17 + 5 + 7

Dodges:

Rolling 4d20: 15 + 17 + 13 + 9

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 12 + 1 + 10 + 11 + 4

ART BY MOOGLE, CODE BY DEE

Waste no worry for the world

Let it be a tragedy of love and glory

His head shifted, and she grunted as his skull knocked into her jaw, though her teeth would remain clenched in an attempt to tear skin - or a bit of mane out - as her head was knocked away from his. She could feel the beginnings of bruising along the edge, but didn't have much time to examine it further as one large paw connected with her shoulder and reinforced what sort of size difference, exactly, she was dealing with.

She hadn't been ready for it, and so stumbled a step but soon caught her balance, left forepaw lifting in an attempt to hook her claws into her opponent's right forelimb before he could pull it away. Big bastard, she'd need a lot more practice to bring someone his size down in the future.

Curse vs. @Mircea
OH Gentry
Round 3 / 3
Hits:

Rolling 5d20: 12 + 13 + 4 + 15 + 18

Dodges:

Rolling 3d20: 8 + 11 + 6

Luck:

Rolling 5d20: 20 + 12 + 8 + 19 + 10

while they wait by gates of pearl

we'll be building palaces in purgatory

code by corvus

A call had reached her just as she'd woken. More than intrigued, she'd followed. He'd chosen to challenge for something she herself had thought to challenge, but alas, another had gotten to him faster. She recalled seeing the female before, recalled that she'd been with them a while now. Perhaps a bit shorter than her own time with the Hollows. But she was interested in seeing how well she did and who would earn their place in this fight.

Slinking through the darkness, the shadow made her way closer, only emerging fully once she'd arrived near @Celestia, greeting her with a chuff before settling next to her for the time being. The fight was already nearing its end, but she still wanted to see who would win.

A face that hides a secret

Dark lying mirror

code by corvus