"Praise the spirits of creation." A wise old dir once said. "Honor the spirits of sustenance."

Flo heard of this from before. Where he had heard of it was vague -maybe from the tribes of dirs, where he once lived -he couldn't remember, however he could still remember the voice clear as day. Spirits of creation refers to the Elders -the smiths of the world, moon, and sun. Spirits of sustenance refers to the Natures, the beings who maintain the balance of the world, the "natural flow" if you will.

"Worship them, for they will give you strength."

It's true. Elders and Natures alike choose an infant, one out of many, and bless them with strength in each generation. It's an honor for a family to receive such a blessing when one is born -a sign of good fortune. Others without that luck and fortune, such as Flo, could only watch the strong, admiring them from the crowds of the ordinary.

"Hey!" Flo snapped back to reality, the bloodshot eyes of the flesh walls and floors of the sorroundings staring straight back at him, catching his gaze.

"What?" Flo looked confused, darting his eyes from one thing to the other until he fixed his gaze towards Kara holding off Xel.

"Help!" Kara yelped, evading and parrying Xel's swift swinging motions, after that blowing him off with a gush of air from a flap of her white wings, sending him back a few distance and following up with a motion of her hand -signaling a whip of the tentacle down below, Xel evading with a slight gash of his right cheek and somersaulted back.

Help? Flo couldn't even stand with the way things now, much less trying to fight against such a beast. He'd be ripped right off with a swish of a dagger, shoved over to the side like dirty litter.

"Coward." Kara sneered.

"I know." Flo cursed under his breath, clenching his fists in arrest as he banged them against the flesh floor -him regretting immediately touching the grotesque material as the eyes stared back at him in surprise, pulling away in haste.

Flo wasn't scared of the meat and skin structures around him because he wasn't used to seeing blood and gore. Hell, hundreds of corpses would greet him every single day as he stepped into the arena, the ripped bodies lining the gritty floor. No, Flo was scared because of the deadly essence emminating from it -eerie, like something unknown that encompasses the nature of the world itself. Something that is not bound by the Great Beings -Ancients, Elders, and Natures. Atleast, that was what Flo thought.

It just felt wrong, Flo thought, eyeing the eyes decorating the sheer ugliness of the meat walls, staring right back at him.

Flo shook his head, trying to get back to reality. This isn't the time, he thought, glancing back to Kara and Xel clashing, strong blade against bloody flesh.

"Wait." Flo muttered, eyeing Xel. He's not using his blasters, he thought. Blasters were, for the most part, short range -around the range of a shortsword, from what he observed during Xel's fight with the black knights. Blasters worked by shooting out a combustible substance and igniting after a short duration. It's not like the average clockers and rifles where it shoots rounds of bullets and can function from many meters away. It was a high-risk yet high-reward trade.

But he's not using it.

Kara faced Xel, dashing back with a strong flap of her wings, giving away a little room between them -the flesh tentacle blocking every advance Xel was trying to make, whether it be through illusionary deceptions or straightforward abandon, Kara's tentacle blocked them all, seemingly learning the playstyle of her opponent, Xel.

Was Xel's fight patterns this easy to read? Flo thought.

"Damn." Kara howled with bated breath, seemingly -no, obviously tired from all the fighting, her clothes and skin dotted with flowing blood and deep cuts, her chest heaving up and down from the toll of the fight.

She's not going to last much longer.

Flo clenched his teeth and fists once again, observing the fight unfolding for a while now. If he cannot be of help in fighting, atleast he can observe. Yes observe. Even if it was all in vain, he atleast can die proudly saying, "At least I tried."

.

.

.

"I'm so useless." Flo thought. However, not giving up on observing Xel's action. He wouldn't budge, even if the world was ending right here and now. He was keen to the end, his eyes almost protruding from its sockets. There must be something that's going on. Something. Xel's not using his blasters. He's not talking. He's not getting tired. Those are signs, he thought, that something must be off.

"Huh, that's weird." He happened to mutter, a soft voice dancing in the alley.

What's weird you ask? It's the fact that the Xel right here isn't like the Xel from before. Something about his movement, his choice of weapon, and the way he acts isn't like the Xel he encountered from back then.

That was offputting.

He eyed Xel all the more, using every ounce of juice he has left in his entire junk for a brain until he would get the answer.

.

.

.

Flo was weak. He knew it all too well. He can't face himself and the slaves he fought and killed in the arena, knowing of his weakness. Was it pure luck that he happened to overpower the slaves he fought? That he lived on instead of them? Was he just really that, a lucky bastard who happened to gain the favor of the Great Beings at the time?

No.

Flo refused to think of it that way. There must have been something that helped Flo win those fights. It wasn't just pure luck. If it was just that, sheer luck, then he can't give meaning to the lives he took. There was no honor to be found in losing to someone who was just lucky.

That's right. Flo's weak.

But he isn't stupid.

.

.

.

It was faint, but he saw it.

And that something came to Flo's attention. He couldn't believe he wasn't able to see it till now with all the crazy stunts and movements Xel pulled off. However, this time, he saw it.

He has cat ears.