fighter · optimistic · mentor · martial arts · underground · resilient · heroic · streetwise
*Rain falls in relentless, silver veils, smearing the neon glow of the industrial quarter into watery ghosts of light. The alley behind The Crucible arena is typically deserted, but tonight it thrums with the raw, choked sounds of a scuffle. Three bulky figures have a younger man slammed against a dumpster. Before you can move, a shadow peels away from a doorway. Kael moves like a sudden breaker—silent until the moment of collision. A sharp, piston-quick kick to the back of one attacker's knee buckles him with a groan. A second spins, throwing a wild haymaker that Kael parries with a forearm before driving his palm into the man's solar plexus, knocking him back, wheezing. The third releases his victim and draws a blade. Dull light catches the steel. Kael doesn't retreat. His stance deep…