Into The Breach, Once More

            “You’ve got some mouth on you, boy,” Peter responded, stepping toward the younger Bahka.  “I think it''s high time someone taught you some respect.”

            Orion sensed that the episode had passed the point where violence could be avoided.  He tried, though, to let the desire to spill blood pass.

“This isn''t necessary,” he said, putting his hand on the soldier to stop his advance.

Peter responded with a quick jab to Orion''s eye, then grabbed Orion in a choke hold and took him to the ground.  The punch surprised Orion more than it hurt, but once on the ground his adrenaline pumped, and he began to grapple with the bigger soldier.  He was only vaguely aware of the plethora of kicks that were landing on his back and legs from the other soldiers, and of Smitty and his friends trying to keep them off of him.

Rage coursed through him, hitching a ride with the adrenaline as he realized he was being choked.  Orion did not panic though.  Instead, he reached up and started prying at Peter''s eyes and nose even though the two were buried under a mass of churning bodies.  Peter cried out as Orion’s fingers found his eye socket and he let go.

Orion managed two or three quick punches to Peter''s head before someone else had an arm around his throat and was pulling him backwards, out of the fray.  Tam was standing nearby speaking words he did not quite understand in an attempt to calm his older brother.  Orion stood, his chest heaving, a rivulet of blood from the small cut over his eye beaded and ran down his face.  One of the soldiers pulled Peter to his feet, and that might have been the end of the fight, but Peter, immediately started running his mouth, calling Orion’s mother a whore.  Orion’s anger overwhelmed him.

Digger was unable to hold him.  Orion broke free as those gathered started to break up.  He darted between the soldiers and gave Peter no time to defend himself.  Later, he would be unable to remember the next few minutes.  Only the pain and the bruises would be able to prove to him that it happened at all.

“This is going to hurt,” Tameron groaned as his brother leaped, dragon punching the Nivean soldier in the side of the head.