I'll go ahead and set up the scene using the info I was given:


"They then came up to a pair of double doors.

"Well, here we are," said Ranger.

Ranger pushed the doors open and the two walked in. The vast gym had padded walls, exercise equipment and a large fighting ring in the center of the room.

"Not bad," said the serval as he looked around. "I could probably do a lot with this much space."

"Well, this is pretty much the layout," she replied. "So, if there's nothing else..."

"Actually, I'd kind of like to put this ring through its paces."

"You mean right now?"

"Is there any reason not to?"

"Well, ok," she replied as they climbed into the ring. "I haven't had a really good sparring session since Leo from Zodiac."

"Let's hope I measure up," Combat replied. The bear and serval then squared off, bowing to each other, before taking their fighting stances. Each circled the other, trying to get a feel of their opponent. Ranger threw the first punch, which Combat blocked and then followed up with a roundhouse kick, which Ranger blocked. The Bionic Bruin then delivered a thrust kick to the serval's midsection. Combat quickly recovered with a back flip, landing on his feet and going back into a fighting stance.

"Not bad," he remarked as they circled each other. This time, Combat made the first move with a roundhouse kick, which Ranger blocked. The serval then jumped up and delivered a thrust kick to her midsection, which she caught. He then followed up with a reverse horse kick, causing her to stagger back. She then came back with a flying kick, which he dodged. When she spun around, Combat grabbed her around her legs and pulled them as he pushed forward with the shoulder. Immediately, she scissored his waist with her legs and brought him down to the mat.

"So, do I measure up?" he asked.

"Yeah," she replied. "You do."

Combat and Ranger stared into one another's eyes for what seemed like an hour, neither saying a word. Then they began to slowly inch closer to one another.

Just as their lips were half an inch away, they suddenly heard the sound of someone clearing their throat. They turned to see Dunston standing at the door, then quickly separated and rose to their feet."


Soooo close!

Combat is  _jrcarter's
Ranger is  _train's