[IC, open to all] Thor Fight Club

[pirateangelbaby]

It's a beautiful spring day in the Nexus, rolling green hills boasting bright splashes of color where flowers have blossomed in all their glory, birds singing in trees sheltered with new green growth, and the sun is shining merrily through puffy white clouds, the breeze only a little on the cool side.

In one of the flatter fields out towards the Wilds, however, things are not quite so peaceful at the moment.

There's an enormous rough ring marked out with scorch marks in the grass, large enough to rival the gladiator arena on Sakaar, and on the edge of the ring there's a cloth laid out with a small variety of weapons that look... well, very second-hand, to put it mildly. But enough to give a good selection of swords or axes or hammers, with a shield or two for protective options.

Thor stands to one side, checking his armor to make sure it's securely fitted before battle, training session or not, and can't quite chase away the grin on his face in favor of a more serious, kingly expression that he probably should be wearing. Learning to compensate for his missing eye is a matter of life and death, probably, whether his or someone else's, but he can't help but feel excited to face something other than a half-assed training dummy shoved into the corner of the cargo hold.

Right, then, who's up for a little sparring with the god of thunder?

Comments

Cue Shadow of the Colossus fight music, lol

[pirateangelbaby]

Knowing that Prometheus is a giant and actually seeing it with his own eye are two different things, and Thor is actually delighted to see that his friend is actually taller than most of the giants he's fought before. Surtur had only been about half as big - the first time, anyway - and none of the Jotuns had come close. Their beasts, on the other hand, definitely had.

Idly, Thor muses that it's a shame that they don't have a Muspelheim dragon to fight together; it'd be a fairer and more honorable fight than taking the beast's head off with the Bifrost. Ah well. Maybe next time.

His first few attacks are experimental, testing hefty punches against the soft spots of one of the titan's ankles, seeing just how much of his strength is going to be needed to even make Prometheus flinch, long before he tries to knock him off his feet. The immense difference in scale is forcing him to pay attention to his position, as well, unable to rely on his experience with more Thor-sized folk to judge the distance accurately. All the same, he's well aware that he's in prime position to get stomped on, watching the shift in the titan's shadow to guess if there's a big ol' foot headed his way.

Aim for the glowing sigils. ;)

[liverfree]

It is oddly exhilarating to be at his true height. Prometheus had almost forgotten the pleasure of taking up so much space. He is also looking forward to seeing Thor in action. Though they are sparring one another, the thought has also crossed his mind that one day they might get the chance to fight side-by-side, perhaps to battle a creature or threat greater than the both of them.

The Titan lets Thor get the first couple of blows in unimpeded, to see what his strength is. And wow, that's quite a punch! Not enough to jostle his stance, but certainly enough to make him uncomfortable. He's also quite pleased that Thor goes right for the weak spot of his ankle. No one takes ankles or heels seriously enough in a fight!

Okay, he'd better move or that's going to leave a bruise. He steps back surprisingly quickly, although not as fast as he would be at his usual height. Instead of attempting to stomp Thor, he bends down and with his long reach attempts to swat Thor out of the ring. His shadow telegraphs his move, but his hand is pretty big. Thor will need to move fast to dodge or act fast to counter the attack.

[pirateangelbaby]

It's gratifying to see that Prometheus follows the general rule of thumb of fighting giants - bigger means slower, and thank the Norns for that, because fast giants would be terrifying - though it's always odd for Thor to realize he's both the smallest and most nimble person in the brawl with one. When his titanic friend pulls back out of punching range, Thor is on alert immediately, casting his gaze upward rather than chase the easier target.

Prometheus' hand is almost as big as Thor, outspread fingers making it difficult to dodge without getting caught by at least one, and even if well-braced against the earth, Thor rather doubts he'd be able to halt its advance altogether. Instead he takes a third option, dropping flat to the ground and digging his fingers in, making him harder to dislodge if the hand should still manage to strike him.

And if it misses, he is prepared to spring back to his feet and sprint in the opposite direction of the blow, before Prometheus can draw his arm back to protect his side where the armor buckles on. He should be able to reach the leather strips of Prometheus' pteruges if he jumps high enough, though whether they're as climbable as they look - or if he can hit his target accurately - he can only try and see.

[liverfree]

Dust flies up from the fighting ring as the Titan's hand swoops down in an open-handed slap. His pinky grazes Thor as the deity ducks down, but fails to knock him out of the ring as planned. He pulls back, ready to try again, but like a man swatting a fly, Thor is too fast for him.

He stands up quickly, but not before Thor manages to grab onto a strip of his armored skirt. He laughs, something he would not do in an actual fight, and attempts to brush off the interloper. Careful, Thor, you have two hands coming at you now, not to mention the Titan's hip shimmy as he adds a rhythmless samba to his counterattack.

[pirateangelbaby]

The glancing blow manages to drag Thor enough to grind dirt into the seams of his breastplate and nearly pushing the air from his lungs, but then he's up and running, grabbing a handful of leather just in time for it to start flailing wildly in a concerted effort to fling him off.

He'd be laughing too if he wasn't concentrating so hard on not getting dislodged from his perch, grasping even more tightly as the titan's shimmying whips him back and forth, and out of the corner of his eye he can see hands making their approach again, this time taking advantage of inability to just run away or duck.

It's a lot to keep track of at once, and his best shot is to maneuver further out of reach. The other strips of the armor skirt flap around just as freely, and Thor takes a gamble and tries to time his release so he can grab onto another, further back, having to rely on a split-second guess if he's going to get it right. Now this is a challenge! At least if he misses, he doesn't have too far to fall.

[liverfree]

It's an unusual fight for Prometheus, not used to fighting an opponent so much smaller than him. He used to horse around a little with his son, Deucalion, at his full size, but then his wife would get anxious about it, so that was that. No wonder so many giants and monsters had their supersized rears handed to them by heroes!

Thor's strategy is sound, and though the timing is perfect on launching from one strap of leather to the next, Prometheus anticipates his move. He brushes his hand against the back of his skirt as if wiping it free of dust, determined to dislodge Thor, if not outright catch him in his open grasp.

[pirateangelbaby]

Thor has just enough time to feel a surge of triumph at his maneuver before Prometheus' hand finds its target, coming straight out of Thor's blind spot to smack into him. It doesn't hurt, besides his pride - and the whiplash - but suddenly his handhold is gone and one of his legs is snared in between two truly titanic fingers.

Oh, well this isn't good.

It's not the first time in recent months that Thor's found himself dangling upside-down with a giant trying to ruin his day, but hey, at least this one isn't trying to kill him! Small favors. There's no hammer on its way to save him this time, however, so he has to find a new way out of this one. He doesn't have the right leverage to pry open Prometheus' fingers, so he begins kicking at the titan's knuckles with his free leg in an attempt to loosen his grip.

[liverfree]

Hey, look what he caught! Prometheus would be proud of himself, except that Thor is caught between his ring and pinky finger, not giving him much dexterity to grip him properly and throw him out of the ring.)

(Via an underhanded lob because he's not going to be a jerk about it and turn Thor into a fastball special.)

But then the kicking starts, and despite their giant size, the Titan's knuckles are sensitive. He instinctively spreads his fingers, allowing Thor to slip out of his grasp. Oops!

[pirateangelbaby]

Unlike certain allies of his, Thor doesn't exactly possess catlike reflexes, so his sudden freedom damn near ends with him landing on his head, managing to tuck into a roll at the last second and leaving a bit of a dent in the earth where he hit. What he lacks in grace he makes up for in resilience, however, and pops back up onto his feet in short order looking dirtied and mussed, but grinning broadly.

And most importantly, still inside the ring.

"You have to be quicker than that," he calls up to his giant friend, though the bravado is at least partly meant to cover the fact that he's having to reassess his attack strategy. Either Thor needs to be faster to maneuver himself out of reach in time to land a more significant blow, or he needs to find a more easily accessible weak spot to exploit. Hmm. Or evade him long enough to tire him out, perhaps?

Whatever he's going to do, he'd better decide fast, shouldn't he? Before Prometheus decides for him.

[liverfree]

"So will you!" he shouts back jovially. Despite not wanting to compare his friend to Zeus, Thor's resilience reminds him of his cousin. Zeus was also not particularly fast on the battlefield, which is why he and the other gods favored strategy rather than brute force. It was the only way to get the upper hand on the Titans.

Trying to grab Thor didn't work so well, so this time Prometheus simply advances, crowding him towards the edge of the ring. He remains a big target, but Thor will need to move fast or exploit an opening to give him the run-around.

[pirateangelbaby]

Thor chuckles briefly at that, but then he has no time left for amusement, because the wide open space is suddenly getting much smaller with a giant taking up so much of it. But Thor is not the kind of man who prefers to retreat and think over his life's choices, so after a reflexive step back, he charges forward anyway.

He's well aware he's in a prime spot to simply get himself punted out of the ring, however, so his goal is to make a beeline for the gap between the giant's feet as quickly as possible and go for a heel strike once he's there, hitting as hard as he can manage the moment Prometheus' other foot is off the ground. It's a long shot, he figures, but Thor is nothing if not persistent. If the titan does kick at him fast enough, however, there'll be nothing to stop him from flying well out of the bounds of the ring.

[liverfree]

It's a dangerous gambit, especially as Prometheus is not telegraphing which foot he plans to kick with. Thor will have to decide that at the last possible moment, right when he is within perfect booting (or sandaling, in his case) range. The Titan gets ready to strike --

Ah! Thor chose right! The heel strike on his left foot causes Prometheus to stumble. Darn heels! He rights himself quickly, but by then Thor is free to make his escape.

Prometheus narrows his eyes playfully. All right, all right, no more Mister Nice Titan! He spins around and stomps his foot, hard enough to make the entire field shake. He's going to try to herd Thor out of the ring again, but he keeps his center of gravity lower in a kind of hunched-over, loping gait. No more sneaking past him this time!

[pirateangelbaby]

Thor barks out a laugh at the tremor that ripples across the ring, and the shift in mood from the titanic presence looming over him, like a cat deciding it's done toying with a mouse. Excellent.

He beats a hasty retreat, buying time and space to think through his next move, and grins when he sees Prometheus take a lower, sturdier stance. More stable, using his breadth to present a greater roadblock to Thor's avenues of escape, but escape is not his next move.

Thor doubles back, boots pounding the dirt as he picks up speed and makes a mighty leap at Prometheus' forearm, planning to use it as a springboard to launch himself further upward and land an uppercut punch to the titan's chin, trading the surer footing of the low ground to risk a decisive strike.

[liverfree]

Prometheus keeps his eyes on Thor, side-stepping when he thinks the god might try running past him again. Instead, Thor is leaping at him like a jumping spider, and he only has a moment to change tactics, a fumbling attempt to try to swat him out of the air, before that punch gets him right in the chin, hard enough to make his teeth clack as his jaw snaps shut.

Ouch! The Titan steps backwards instinctively to keep his balance, his hands waving in the air as if trying to ward off a pernicious insect. Thor can look for another opening, if he chooses to risk getting smacked by one of those hands.

[pirateangelbaby]

A solid hit! Bolstered by his successful strike and unwilling to lose the edge of having the giant off-balance, Thor is more than willing to take the risk of being batted out of the ring for a chance to press his advantage. He goes for another titan-assisted leap, but with the wild flailing it's much harder for him to find a foothold, and before Thor can adjust and find a better angle of attack, a lucky swipe catches him on his blind side and sends him soaring.

He's not as prepared to hit the ground this time, bouncing a few times as he tumbles across the grass and just outside of the ring, the burnt earth crackling underneath him.

Damn.

Thor doesn't immediately move to get back to his feet, just raises one hand in a thumbs-up.

[liverfree]

Prometheus takes a moment to catch his breath, visibly winded from the experience. Who knew fighting someone so much smaller would be such a workout? He rubs the soreness out of his jaw, then bounds over to Thor's prone body. By the time he reaches his friend's side, he's shrunk down to a human-sized height.

"That was amazing! You hit me, Thor! Not even Zeus could strike a bare-handed blow on a Titan!" He offers a hand to help him up. "A little risky of you to try for a second hit, but I'll bet it might have worked on one of my brothers. Well done!"

[pirateangelbaby]

Thor is more embarrassed than winded, but it was a good bout and there's no shame in losing to such a formidable opponent, no matter how lucky the final blow was. He accepts the hand up without hesitation, a little bruised and very dirt-smudged, but with an easy smile on his lips.

"If I still had my hammer, I would've had you," he says, running a hand through his hair to dislodge the worst of the debris. "That was a hell of a fight! Most giants I've faced are smaller than you."

[liverfree]

"Yes, you probably would have," the Titan agrees. He's not here to let the air out of Thor's ego. Not that much, anyway. "Keep an eye on that blind side, though."

The comment on size makes him rest his hands on hips and laugh. "I'd say you aren't looking hard enough, then!" He claps a hand on Thor's shoulder and adds, "This was great fun, but I need to return to my studio. I'll leave you to your other challengers."

He has some pottery to make. And maybe a good long think about how to better fight smaller opponents. Thor gave him a real run for his money.

[pirateangelbaby]

"Mm, indeed. It's not as easy as my father made it look." But Odin did master himself, in time, and so Thor is confident he can do the same. With more practice, obviously.

He chuckles too, feeling invigorated by the exercise and the unique challenge Prometheus gave him today. "I expect a rematch sometime," he says with a grin. "You won't find me such an easy target a second time around."

For the immediate moment, however, he has others waiting to test their mettle against the god of thunder, and Thor is more than eager to oblige them.