Let the bodies hit the Floor

Posted on Friday 2 July 2021 @ 18:42 by Gunnery Sergeant Alexander Beck

Mission: A Cry from the Darkness
1493 words - 3 OF Standard Post Measure

Pearl arrived dressed in her green sweats and tee shirt. Her feet were bare and she went to the mats and waited for Gunny. She was thrilled, and yes was nervous as well. What was he going to do and what will she learn. She began to do warm up stretches to make certain she didn't move the wrong way and end up on the mats with a cramp who knows where.

Beck was on the mats, waiting. He had used his time wisely, limbering up and getting his blood flowing. He was wearing a pair of sweatpants and a sleeveless OD green undershirt. He grinned as 'Princess' walked out. Several Marines who were working out nearby began strolling over to watch the match. On one hand, Bijoux was young and pretty tough. On the other, the Gunny had two decades of experience on her. Beck had no doubt that there would be betting if there were actually any money on board.

Pearl was well aware of the gathering Marines. When it came to someone sparring to test the skills of each other, it brought interest giving them a chance to assess their fellow marine and to see what they had. She did a visual scan taking in Gunny's movements and the way he held himself. Oh she could already tell she was going to be sporting some bruises after this, but she didn't care. Pearl felt she was going to enjoy this as well.

Some wagers were going on, a bottle of booze, some gold pressed latinum as there was that around due to the area of space they were in. Also scheduled time in the holodecks or even shift exchanges.

Once she felt sufficiently warmed up, Pearl stepped to the center of the mats, awaiting Gunny.

"Gunny, you need a ref for this one?" one of the marines offered.

"Nah, we'll stick to the normal rules. No eye gouging or cheap shots. If someone's bleeding, match is over. This is for fun. " Beck responded.

The marine nodded and went to watch with the rest of the others. There was definitely a sense of excitement, they wondered just what would happen. Someone decided to be funny and called for some music just for background. "Mama Said Knock You Out" the Five Finger Death Punch Version

Pearl smiled slightly, not letting it distract her. Besides at times she does have her own inner jukebox playing when sparring. She looked at Gunny, figuring out just how to start. She decided to just move forward moving lightly on the balls of her feet, sure a rookie move, but she was testing just what he was going to do. She threw a jab towards his solar plexus, it darting forward, a bit slower than she normally would.

Beck easily blocked her move. He shook his head.

"Don't hold back, Princess. You ain't going to break me. This old dog's still got plenty of fight left in him. " he said.

Pearl grinned. "Old dog? I don't see an old dog only someone who will be fun." giving a wink then her expression changed to something more concentrated. Moving back a pace or two, Pearl gave Gunny another assessing look then, she took two quick steps towards him and feinted to the left, on the ball of her foot as if to go past him then pivoted on her right, in order to do an elbow strike with her right elbow towards his ribs.

Beck saw her heading into his right side with her elbow. It was a good move; there wasn't anything he could do to avoid it. So he crooked his back, moving his shoulders down and taking the hit. Once she had made contact, he swept with his right foot, just hard enough to knock her off balance. She stumbled forward. He jumped back.

Pearl adjusted the stumble forward into a somersault to where she was back on her feet, and spun around to where she was facing Gunny once again. She had the biggest grin on her face, looking much younger than what she really was. This was fun, this was exciting, Pearl was impressed. She quickly moved towards him again, and sent a punch towards him, getting ready to grab his arm when he moved away or blocked.

Beck nodded approvingly. "Nice move. " he said, moving in. He shifted left as she threw her punch, but instead of grabbing her arm by instinct, he whirled, sweeping his right foot out, trying to catch the back of her right knee and trip her from behind.

That was surprising to Pearl and she stumbled forward this time not catching herself and she fell to the mat on her side. "Nice move there!" she said, moving to get back up from the mats.

The marines gave out an oooh, her hit the mat. "Get her Gunny!" one shouted.

Beck stepped back, letting her get up. When she was on her feet, he assumed his fighting stance.

Pearl sized up Gunny once more. Then she smiled, Pearl moved in quickly in order to wrap her arms around Gunny's waist, locking her arms around him and stepped backwards with one foot to pull him off balance, using her body weight. If it worked she'd twist herself to where he'd land on the mats. If not, then she'd find herself on the mats herself, with him at an advantage.

Beck felt her arms wrap around his waist and knew she had him. He could have broken her grip, but he ran the risk of hurting one of his Marines so he let her toss him. When his back hit the mat he rolled backwards, using the force of her throw to flip himself over onto his knees, getting to his feet in less than a second. He nodded approvingly. She was good. Princess was lightning fast and knew that she was already at a disadvantage, so she used her speed and her quick reflexes to her advantage. With some more seasoning, she'd be almost unstoppable.

"Nice move. Later I'll show you how to counter that so you'll know what to expect. " he said.

"I'd appreciate that, and are you okay? " Pearl asked from her position on the mats. She stood up, to face him, but not going towards him in an attack."

He grinned. "I'm good. " he said, extending his arm and with his fingers beckoning her to attack.

Pearl nodded, making a decision. Knowing that Gunny was capable of handling more, she decided to up her game. No cheap shots but a straight out attack. Pearl moved forward once again, when she neared Gunny, she went for his solar plexus like she had before. This time though, Pearl wasn't going slow like before. Neither was she going full force either. She'd save that for her training programs. Rapid punches to the solar plexus then a tap on his cheek, was her maneuver. The tap on his cheek could possibly be used against her.

Beck saw her tensing up. Good. He decided to encourage her.

"Don't hold back, Princess. If you hold back on the mats, you might hesitate in combat. " he said.

Pearl looked at Gunny, "Nope, I won't hold back on the combat, no hesitation. Here, I don't want to do injures in a sparring match. Not like I had done, before I came here. " she stood still and not charging in towards the Gunny. "You put on protective gear, then I can show you what I can do, otherwise we're going to have to go into the holodeck for you to see. Or you had better block what I throw at you. "

Her chin was up and her eyes were flashing with fire. "Or you can show me what you can do. I know you could have gotten out of that clinch, it would have hurt me, but you didn't. What's it going to be Gunny" a lopsided smile appeared. "We duke it out here, and I go down that rabbit hole I just crawled out of? Or we change tactics and do a training scenario. All of us working as a team." an eyebrow raised. "Your choice"

Beck nodded.

"I did say we fight by the rules. Good. You know when to back down. I think we're done here. My objective was to see if you can be goaded into a fight. Looks like you learned your lesson from the last incident. " he said.

Pearl nodded, "I certainly have, and thanks you've helped a lot." giving a smile. "See you later Gunny." she turned around and noticed some disappointed looks on a couple. Others, they seemed to be satisfied with the outcome. Another smile and she headed off to hit the showers.

((>>> Gunnery Sergeant Alexander Beck
Marine Sniper
USS Merlin



Lance Corporal Pearl Bijoux
Marine
USS Merlin