Manners were always appreciated, even when they were the bare minimum, and Hadama sent a quiet pulse of acknowledgment through the bond even as he turned to try and trap the shark against the coral once more. He suspected that the tiger shark had rarely faced anything that so outmassed him in combat; most of the larger sea life were filter feeders or fish eaters, not predators capable of hunting sharks. Even in the case of his fellow mantas, the natural variety were gentle creatures that would run from a shark rather than face it in a fight, in spite of their advantages in size and speed.
Though this combat showed why that was the case quite eloquently. Size and speed mattered little when faced with bad luck rolls sharp teeth, and even the King couldn't make up the difference in the natural abilities of their shifts.
Kaiden sped away from his trap and twisted almost on his own tail to drive back. Though Hadama had started to curve up his lost momentum couldn't be regained swiftly enough to dodge, and he felt sharp teeth pierce his pectoral fin. Hold, he called through the bond, shifting as he spoke so that his fin shrunk and melted away beneath Kaiden's teeth, leaving Hadama free and swimming in his mer form once more. Far smaller, but far better able to defend himself if the blood in the water went to the shark's shifted head. You have won.
And given that Kaiden had bested him in three passes out of four, the King inclined his head gracefully in defeat. I stand corrected. There is nothing I can teach you about combat.
Though this combat showed why that was the case quite eloquently. Size and speed mattered little when faced with bad luck rolls sharp teeth, and even the King couldn't make up the difference in the natural abilities of their shifts.
Kaiden sped away from his trap and twisted almost on his own tail to drive back. Though Hadama had started to curve up his lost momentum couldn't be regained swiftly enough to dodge, and he felt sharp teeth pierce his pectoral fin. Hold, he called through the bond, shifting as he spoke so that his fin shrunk and melted away beneath Kaiden's teeth, leaving Hadama free and swimming in his mer form once more. Far smaller, but far better able to defend himself if the blood in the water went to the shark's shifted head. You have won.
And given that Kaiden had bested him in three passes out of four, the King inclined his head gracefully in defeat. I stand corrected. There is nothing I can teach you about combat.
