The Adventures of Soap Boy

Part 10 Aspis VS Aguante

People were getting hurt. They needed to be protected. There was only one man for the job, and that was Aspis.

For months, he'd been tracking the rumored villain. A young man who wandered from town to town stealing whatever he wanted or needed, and viciously brutalizing anybody who so much as looked at him funny.

The man's pension for violence was said to be unrivalled, and his power was in equal measure. Even a squad of soldiers fell before his might. Stories had spread around well enough by that point that he was treated as royalty as soon as he arrived to a community, but that still didn't stop him. After all, one could not possibly give him everything he wanted without a fight. Being as a fight was on his list of desires. Due to the man's unending lust for battle, and unparalleled resilience to attack, he had been given the name Aguante.

It was today that Aguante's reign of terror would end if Aspis had any say in the matter. He had entered a town full of cowering locals as he had several times as of late, and asked where the menace had left to, only to be informed that his target was still in town.

After the very slow and meticulous process of evacuating the townspeople, the only building left to clear was the one containing the threat. According to the locals, there were still a few people in there serving Aguante's needs. Aspis assured them that he was more than capable of defending these innocents, and marched onward toward his dueling grounds.

---

Aguante sat at the bar counter, enjoying his meal. Though, the food didn't taste very good when there were no good prospects for battle around. All that had been left with him were frail, cowardly men, and women. It seemed that once more, he would have to be satisfied with a one-sided beatdown to tide him over until his next chance at real battle.

It was as he sat there, running through his plan of attack, that his well honed instincts notified him of a slight change in the atmosphere. It was extremely subtle, but the sounds from outside the bar had become a little bit quieter. Not by much, a normal person would never have noticed, but Aguante was not normal. A moment passed, and the sounds outside grew dimmer once more.

Somebody was clearing away the weaklings. This was good. Really good. Evacuations meant strong fighters. Strong fighters meant real battle. And real battle meant glorious victory. Rather than move, and interrupt the evacuation, Aguante finished his meal as though he hadn't noticed the movements in the first place. Eventually, things grew almost entirely silent outside. It was time.

---

Aspis burst through the door to the bar, and was greeted with the sight of Aguante sat hunched over his food, back turned to him. Behind the counter were several men and women cowering in fear.

"Do you bring battle?" Asked the rumbling voice of the man in the stool.

"I bring justice for those you've harmed, and those you will." Aspis replied.

"You speak as though you will win."

"Release the hostages, and you'll see that I can." Aspis said. "Or don't. I can get them out safely either way."

Aguante raised his hand up into the air, and Aspis prepared to defend whoever the following move was directed at. To his surprise, however, Aguante waved off the innocents. After a moment of hesitation, they passed the towering figure to leave the bar. Just in case, Aspis placed a shield between them and his foe during their passage.

Once the door closed behind Aspis, Aguante spun around in his stool. He took a relaxed posture, leaning back in a slouch with his arms hanging off of the counter behind him.

Looking at him, it was obvious that he had been in his fair share of fights. His nose had clearly been broken several times, and he was missing a part of his right ear. Other than that, Aguante had seemingly more scars than skin. Cuts, scrapes, burns, and even the occasional bullet hole spotted most of his body. The calluses on his hands spoke of a long history of fighting. A history that must have long predated the Cataclysm. Aguante was always violent.