Justice Eternal

14 - Dirty Moves

This time Justice was prepared. As they bowed to each other, she centred herself and cleared her mind. Concentrated on Anton as a whole, and ignoring his devilish smile, and glittering eyes, she stepped back the moment he reached for her.

There was no time to gloat, and she spun sideways, swinging around an arm to hit against the side of his body. He raised an arm and deflected it. She spun back before relaunching her attack, which he blocked again.

They continued like this, their movements fast, and equally matched. As they traded hits back and forth, neither was able to break through the defence of the other.

Justice felt confident now. Her focus was sharp, and she could see many of his moves before they even came. A few times she managed to connect a hit, but he simply grunted and moved out of the way.

Anton was very good, and she was impressed. In a small break when they both pulled back to reassess, she noticed that his face was soft. It was not tense in thought like many other's she'd fought before. Instead, it was as though he was enjoying it. A smile was set permanently upon his lips, and messy blond hair swayed about his face with each movement. He radiated an aura of glowing assurance and skill.

Snap out of it, Justice. Frustrated at how her mind had wandered in the middle of a fight, she redoubled her attack.

"Don't hold back, Anton," said Viktor from the sideline.

The teen grunted and looked up at Justice as she flew around and delivered a kick in his back. He stumbled forward and laughed.

She rushed in after him, and he turned to meet her. She felt a thrill whip through her as a gap opened up in his stance. There was a brief moment where her mind faltered as she tried to understand why the boy had laughed, but there was no time - she focused back on the opening, and took it.

One step, two step...

She turned her body, twisting as she swung her fist around to connect with the side of his head.

It was a dirty move, and she knew it.

Anton's eyes widened and his mouth curled into another wicked smile. There was a sound like crunching bones, and a second later, Justice's hand was slamming into the soft fur of a grizzly bear. A clawed paw wrapped around her arm and Justice screamed in anger.

Anton the bear dragged her sideways and pushed her down against the ground. She felt the earth tremor at his heavy footsteps. In a moment, the teen returned, kneeling over her again.

She narrowed her eyes and growled at him. "That was a cheap move." She kicked, and he laughed, holding her down against the ground.

"Aw, come on now," he said teasingly. "I was just doing what I was told."

Justice made another wordless, frustrated sound. "You knew I was going to win, and so you cheated."

"Oh," he said, as he sat back on his heels and clutched dramatically at his heart. "You wound me, my dear."

Justice rolled her eyes and huffed. She pushed him back and clambered to stand over him.

He was quick to follow, and the feigned indignation fell from his face, replaced by worry.

"I'm sorry," he said in a desperate whisper. "I was just mucking around."

She brushed past him and demanded Viktor give them a rematch — one without Anton shifting. The man was impassive as he waved her away, claiming he'd seen enough of her karate to sufficiently assess her abilities.