Final Bout (Patreon)

It was going to be a spectacular day. I was finally going to get the recognition I deserve as a fighter. As a Keeper, we are taught several things. Ancient secrets, knowledge and wonders, the world over; and though my family has always made great Keepers, we’re even better warriors. Yes, all Keepers learn the ancient art of the ‘Deft Hand’; a martial art of focusing our qi to augment ourselves and interact with the flow around us. As the daughter of the Karyde clan much is expected of me. Above all else, I’m expected to excel at the martial arts. Yet I’ve failed to win a single proving.

‘Today is going to be different!’ I’d said to myself, and I believed it too. I had trained so hard and put in a lot of time sparring with my friend Saria, as well as the masters. As one of the very best of our sect, keeping up with Saria showed marked improvement in my technique. I was confident that I could win. So far I had defeated four challengers on my way to the proving’s final bout. I had done well and my fellow disciples were cheering me on, boosting my morale. I stepped into the circle to the sounds of applause and I loved it. I was certain I could win the final bout. My opponent was some young lynx from the southern athenaeum. I wasn’t too worried about him. I had heard he wasn’t anything special; sadly, I was misinformed.

Taryn specialized in ‘The Way of the Phoenix’, one of the older arts that focused on a lot of kicking and quick strikes. My family’s art, ‘The Way of the Wandering Fist’, was one developed with a few of the same principals. Though we focus mostly on flowing movements, palm strikes and counters; I myself excel at kicking as well. My strong thighs and calves served as proof. I was sure that my flowing movement and powerful punches and palm strikes would be more than a match for him. Oh, how very wrong I was.

The first time he landed a kick, it knocked all the wind out of me. Normally, we all have a barrier of sorts, a spirit shield comprised of our qi. His attack cut right through mine, I felt every bit of it. He’d fainted right and I’d moved left, wiping my leg about to discourage him from moving back in. I intended to catch him off guard, strike between his attack. A risky gamble, but one I was confident would succeed. That was until I watched him pull a ‘shadow step’ on me.

Pivoting off his foot, he used a burst of qi to manipulate the mana around him, propelling him forward at an astonishing speed. The kind of move that you wouldn’t attempt normally. Being off balanced as he was, he should have propelled forward and tumbled to the ground. Instead, he righted himself in the air and swiftly caught me in the abdomen with a double-step kick. The force made me fly back and it was I who tumbled.

As I recovered, he was on me again. I dodged the heel of his foot and then another kick, this one charged with his essence. It felt like fire, but I dissipated it with my own qi. I rushed into his guard trying my best to take away his advantage. Those feet were dangerous. I threw a few short jabs and strikes, a little combination to back him up. He responded by parrying my arms to the side with his left knee and striking me clean in the side of my head with his right leg. He was far more limber than I imagined.

To my credit, I didn’t fall. I ignored the pain, the buzzing in my ear and the dizziness as I countered in kind. The momentum of the blow carried me and I forced all my qi down, igniting it in one burst. Since I was going to be spinning from his kick, I figured when my feet left the ground, I could use it to my advantage. I released my body to the mercy of gravity and the flow, twirling so fast I felt my lunch come up. I then used the force to land a devastating counter-kick to the side of his head before falling to the ground. It was the best shot I’d get in on him all day.

I’d like to say I hung in there; y’know, gave as good as I got. But that isn’t what happened. Eventually he overpowered my guard and came in on me with a flurry of kicks and punches. I’d been beaten before, but this was the first time in my life I’d ever been knocked out. Saria says he did me in with a backflip kick. Seriously! I mean, fuck, how cocky is that. But I guess since I wasn’t in any position to stop him, he could show out. Either way, I woke up in the healing hall a few hours later feeling all the worse for wear.

When I awoke, none of the ‘Hands’ were in the hall. It had been empty for sometime and night had fallen. I felt embarrassed to have been so thoroughly defeated, shamefully throwing a bit of a tantrum. Okay. more than a bit. I kicked and screamed into my pillows, frustrated at my own inadequacies.. I might have gotten up and hit a wall or two, but as I lifted the pillow from my face, I realized I was not alone.

My eyes must have been the size of saucers as I almost gagged on my tongue.

‘What... why... uh...’ I stuttered and yammered, but could not find the words. There in the window, just resting on the seal was Taryn. He’d been watching me the whole time.

‘You seem spritely, all things considered,’ He chuckled at me.

I shot him my meanest scowl I could, but it was hard to be upset. He’d beat me fair and square.

‘What do you want? Come to gloat?’ I huffed. Shrugging, he hopped down and walked over to me.

‘Maybe a little,’ he said placing a soft hand on my bare stomach.

“I’m mostly checking if you’re okay.’ he added. I didn’t know what to say to that.

In talking to him I found out he wasn’t an asshole or anything. He was just very confident, maybe a bit cocky; but I could see why. He’d certainly knocked my block off. I commended him on his speed and mastery of qi. I praised his ‘Phoenix Style’ and asked him to critique me. I wanted to know why I had lost, and he simply said; ‘You were trying too hard.’

I was bit incredulous at first. Who was he to tell me I was ‘trying too hard’; but then he broke it down for me and I understood what he meant. I was thinking too much and not reacting on instinct. I relied too heavily on my taught forms and lessons and not enough on my warriors intuition. I’d been taken off guard by his ‘shadow step’ because I always thought that it was dangerous and risky to attempt such a move in that instance. He too knew that I would think that and that’s why he tried it. It was absolutely guaranteed to take me by surprise.

After that, the two of us talked. We chatted long into the midnight hours about a number of things. I learned a lot about him and what life was like in the athenaeum he was from. I rarely get to speak to Keepers from other sects. Our masters are still frightened that the Druids will finally return to finish the job they started three hundred years ago; dismantling and destroying the Circle. It is a constant fear of mine and I was relieved to know that Taryn shared my concern.

The Druids had not made a move against us since the Athenaeum in Valdis had been destroyed. I was just a little girl then, but I remember having nightmares about it for a long time, of Arcane Knights descending upon our temples and libraries, killing keepers and burning the records.The screams haunted me. Taryn put his hand on my shoulder to comfort me. He said; ‘If the time comes, we’ll be ready.’ I don’t know why, but it made me feel a lot better.

We’d talked for the better part of the small hours of the night and then it was time to say goodbye. Taryn would be off with his fellows in the morning, travelling back to Constance in the south. I’d had such a good time with him, I didn’t really want to let him leave. I wasn’t sure if I’d get to see him again. Keepers from different sects hardly ever meet unless there’s trouble. So forgive me if you think I’m too forward or unladylike when I tell you I asked him to stay longer. When he asked if I wanted to talk some more, I told him no. I had something else in mind.

He was surprised at first and told me that we’d only just met. I reminded him that it may be the only time we meet and he was forced to agree. I teased him, asking where all that confidence and bravado had gone, making a joke about him not being cocky about his cock. It was corny, but it made him laugh and cut the tension. Proudly he proclaimed that, ‘He’d show me!’ He did, unfastening his pants and showing me his perfectly, pink member.

I took a moment to look around for the hands or attendants. I hadn’t seen one since I woke up, but I was worried one would come to check on me at just the wrong moment. Taryn asked me if I was worried and inferred that maybe it wasn’t a good idea. I put his cock in my mouth before either he and or I could lose our nerve. It was rewarding to hear him mutter, ‘Oh, wow!’ as his body shuttered in response to my touch.

Normally, I’m a bit self-conscious about being intimate with others. It’s not that I’m a prude or anything. We keepers are quite liberal with our sexuality; but like with my martial arts, I can be a bit competitive. I always want to be considered good at what I do. So I work my best to excel at things. Sucking cock is no different.

In my experience it’s just like fighting. Everything is one part technique, one part skill and two parts enthusiasm. So when I’m sucking a guy off I focus on a that. With Taryn, I started with a bit of deep throat. I like to go all in at the start. Give them every bit of what I can do and then slow down. With Taryn, I took my time showing him that I had absolutely no gag reflex. I took his dick right to the hilt and ran my tongue along the undershaft, making sloppy, slurpy noises as I went. I bobbed my head back and forth quickly, making sure I brushed the tip of his cock against the back of my throat. When I first started giving blow jobs, this was the hardest part. Now, it was my favorite.

He gripped the buns on my hair and I took a firm grab of his butt. I think I must have went down on for about fifteen minutes before he finally came. I got to try all my favorite little techniques. Going deep and licking his balls, pulling it out to the side of my mouth and making it go ‘pop’! I even got to try that whirling tongue thing that Saria’s so good at. I think I did a good job, he liked it, but my tongues not so long as hers.

In the end, he cried out loudly and came. He shot thick ribbons of cum into my mouth. It’s funny. I didn’t gag once while sucking him off, but the sheer volume of his semen in my mouth caught me off guard. I coughed loudly and spit most of it on the floor. It was so bad that he’d kneeled down, worried I was choking. So unsexy. Still, it was all for the better because one of the hands showed up to check on the noise. Since we were both on the ground the room look empty.

‘See what you did?’ I teased. He grinned and replied; ‘Me, what about you. I guess you can’t handle my explosive flavor!’ I tried to stifle a laugh. He was so corny, but it was endearing.

I licked my chops and kissed him on the cheek and whispered; ‘I can handle anything you can dish out, big boy!’ in my best impression of a sultry seductress. My act was short lived as I had to clamp my hands over my mouth as I felt his hand reach down and brush away the flap of my qipao. His fingers brushed against my pussy before he moved my panties aside and I looked back at him like he was insane. The Hand was still in the room investigating the noise.

‘Are you crazy!?’ I whispered as loudly as good sense would allow. He ignored me, moving back and positioning himself behind me. I braced myself. I knew he was going to put it in and though I knew it wasn’t the best idea; it excited me My inner thighs moistened more and breathes hitched up a bit. He pushed his dick into me slowly, awkwardly balancing himself above my ass. I tried my best to not moan out my pleasure while still listening to the footsteps walk around the hall. I worried the Hand would pick up my scent and that would be that. I was so wet that you could practically hear droplets of my love juices hitting the floor. But that could have just been my imagination.

Taryn begin to lay into me, slowly at first. The shuffle of my body, his body, and the floor was loud enough that I was sure we would be heard. I could only pray we weren’t and keep my muzzle shut. Thankfully I heard a call from beyond the hall. Another Hand was calling for the one wandering about the room. With all the table-high beds in the way, she couldn’t see us. She I say, because I heard her voice as she replied. She sounded like she didn’t want to leave, curious as to the odd sounds she was hearing. Thankfully a Hand’s duties are very important and require immediate attention. So she left without much protest and Taryn got more bold.

With the Hand moving on, Taryn began to fuck me with every ounce of his strength. It was intense. I focused on biting my lip and the sound of slapping behind me, as his thick penis made a mess of my insides. I hoped to keep my cries to a minimum, but it felt so good to have the thick, mushroom head of his cock touching places that my fingers couldn’t ever reach. I don’t know how long he and I fucked, but I know that by the time he pulled it out and came on my ass, I was spent.

I’d cum multiple times and was exhausted. Taryn definitely had stamina on me, that’s for damn sure. I wanted to pass out right there, with him above me. It’d be nice to just lay there in his embrace, covered in the smell of our love making. But alas, we had to get up. He didn’t want to be found there naked by the Hands in the morning. Keepers may be very liberal about sex, but we’d kinda just desecrated the healing hall and I don’t think the Masters would approve. Sadly, I kissed him and said my goodbyes, promising to see him and fellows off in the morning. He took me in his arms and kissed me more passionately, promising to see me again one day.

The next morning was a bit of a disappointment. I got to see him as he was leaving out, but I couldn’t really say anything. The goodbyes to the disciples from other Athenaeums was a formal thing. All stuffy and full for formalities. I didn’t get to properly say goodbye. We all just stood in a line and bowed before he went on his merry way. We caught eyes as he left and he winked at me causing my tail to dance. With that,I watched him go and I went about my day.

I still see him sometimes... in my mind. When I’m lonely at night I try to imagine those blue eyes of his and that thick, pink cock. What it would’ve been like had we more time together. Maybe one day we’ll cross paths again. Perhaps at another proving or event. Perhaps at a time and place where we can be more intimate. Either way, I can’t say that I’m too upset with my loss. Turned out to be a spectacular day afterall. If every time I got beat down it ended like this, maybe I wouldn’t be such a sore loser.