Tooth and Talon: Barfight
They met up in a bar in a shady part of town. It was dingy and dirty and all the other adjectives that would be used to describe a generally unfriendly looking place. The pictures on the walls had broken frames, some with shards of glass still hanging in them. All the barstools had stains from various drunken customers. Puke, beer, excrement. The bar itself smelled of the same. Bloodbeak had mentioned wanting to meet somewhere dark and dirty, but this was taking it a little too far. Rifki didn't mind though; he came here all the time and didn't notice the smells and sounds that would drive any sane customer away. The smell was enough to urge passersby to the other side of the street.
"Mother of God Rifki, you couldn't have picked a worse place, could you?" The irritated sounding vulture wasn't in the mood for joking, and he wasn't sure if the hyena was fucking with him or if he seriously came here to drink.
"Oh come on it's not that bad. It grows on you. Heh heh." The nervous laugh from the hyena was normal. To anyone else it would sound like he was embarrassed, but Bloodbeak knew it was one of confidence. It wasn't that all hyenas were born with a stupid laugh, the stereotype was just so prevalent that they couldn't help but fall into it.
"Yeah well not me. I mean, when I say shady I meant something along the lines of a warehouse or a proper night club, not a filthy, disgusting piece of-" The hyena cut him off.
"Hey don't go bashing on this place. You asked and I gave you what you asked for. I used to come here as a kid, alright? So don't go telling me that my favorite bar is a piece of shit. I know it is, but just... don't point it out, ok?" He looked genuinely offended, but with Rifki it was hard to tell. He liked the filth and dinginess of it, but he really did feel a genuine attachment to it, the kind that a regular adult would feel towards a gift shop he was too embarrassed to mention.
"Yeah ok, I'm sorry. But next time I'm picking, alright? Good. Now, down to business... Err..." Bloodbeak looked around. Sure there were probably countless criminals around here already, but that didn't mean discussing crime was safe here, especially of this magnitude. The hyena was quick to reassure him.
"Nah it's fine, no one cares about us. I mean sure you stick out, but they all know me here. Yepp," he stretched back, making sure people noticed him, "They know not to mess with me."
"Fuck, ok anyway, business." The vulture leaned in towards the center of the table, arms braced on the rotting wood. "I've found a new place to, err..." He couldn't help but look around again, "keep our toys. It's out in the country so we won't have to worry about noise. Not that it will be a problem, 'cause it has a nice unfinished basement, just concrete walls and flooring, deep underground. I mean not like bunker deep, but you know what I mean. It still has all we need though. It's a nice respectable place. I'll have to sell my place in town to buy it, but it'll be worth it. And hey, this way you'll have enough space to actually do whatever you want with them. And you can let them scream all you want.
"But really, if we're going to make a living off this, we need to figure this shit out. I don't have any contacts that I can really trust, but I know a few people that talk about doing what we do. I mean, I'm sure you know you know someone in this dump that needs our help... But what I'm saying is that if we're going to do this right you can't just pick whoever you want, you need to be careful. Rifki, are you listening to me?" Bloodbeak was trying to kick him under the table to get his attention away from the waitress.
"Yeah I'll have the usual. Blood, what do you want?" Rifki was obviously ignoring him, unconcerned with concerning issues, too busy eyeing the horse waitress.
"Fucking pig, pay attention! No I'm not thirsty, shove off! Christ I don't know how you can stand it here. Anyway I'll tell you later when you're not so obviously bloodthirsty. I have it all figured out, I just need to fill you in on it. Oh fuck it never mind..." The bird trailed off listlessly, wondering how good of an idea it was to team up with such a mindless brute. Sure they had known each other for years, but he also knew how reckless the hyena could be. Frankly, he was amazed Rifki had never been caught. The only thing really keeping him safe was that he didn't need to get rid of the bodies. That and he lived in one of the worst parts of town.
Bloodbeak tried asking Rifki once why he didn't move somewhere better, but the answer was simpler than he expected. Rifki simply didn't feel the need to move. Everything he needed was right here. The police didn't like to stay around too long in this part of town, so none of the crimes were reported. People disappeared frequently enough, so no one was suspicious if another body went missing. Frankly, Bloodbeak suspected that Rifki was the number one cause for the disappearances, which in turn kept him safe somehow. He also had a nasty habit of accidentally paralyzing his victims, making removal of the gags he always had on them impossible. The ones he didn't paralyze were either bound or just dead. But really the number one reason Rifki didn't move out, Bloodbeak suspected, was that he didn't know how to go about doing it. Not that he would be allowed in any other part of town anyway, and even if he did manage to get a place, he would be in jail within a week.
"Here's your drink, Riff." The horse was back with some drink Bloodbeak didn't recognize. He didn't drink (not often at least) and was clueless about anything of the sort. The hyena took a large drink of it, not noticing that most of it spilled out around his mouth.
"Mmm, nothing better than a Bloody Mary. Hits the spot every time." Rifki was grinning like an idiot.
"Wait seriously? That's your favorite?" Ok so Bloodbeak knew a little about drinks.
"I dunno, I just get them because of the blood they put in them." He took another chug, emptying the rest of it into his muzzle and the floor.
"I doubt.. fuck, never mind. Look, you're spilling it everywhere. You're drunk, and everyone knows how you ge-" He was cut off again.
"FUCK YOU I'M NOT BEING AGGRESSIVE!" The hyena was on his feet in a flash, chair shoved across the room and tripping a waitress, drinks crashing to the floor. He was standing in his usual drunk boxing pose, begging for a fight.
"Hey fuck you man!" Another patron had jumped up from his seat at the table behind the hyena. It was a large wolf, piercings studding his features and a tight shirt hugging his muscle bound chest.
The rest of the bar was instantly hooting and cheering, thirsty for a fight. Most of the cheers were for Rifki, apparently well known for his fights. The only ones supporting the wolf were sitting at his table. Yells of FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT were coming from all corners of the room, punctuated by the occasional KICK HIS ASS. A skimpy vixen from the wolf's table look distressed, trying to yell at her friend to sit down. But it was too late, Rifki had turned towards his new target, fists raised like a wimp who had never been in a fight. The wolf lunged forward, fist heading straight for the hyena's gut.
To an outside observer, it would seem like the wolf had a clear advantage. He looked stronger, faster, and much more sober. Rifki on the other hand had terrible posture, was stumbling about like a drunken hyena and was clearly outmatched. But everyone in the bar knew how ruthless of a fighter he was. Sure he wasn't the best, but he could take a beating like none other. Because of this, he could keep landing blows until his opponent's fists were broken. Which had actually happened once, according to someone sitting behind Bloodbeak. All Rifki cared about was beating his opponent until someone called the police. Knowing all this, Bloodbeak had full confidence in his partner.
To his surprise however, the wolf's blow hit Rifki right in the gut, staggering him and making him stumble backwards and fall on his back. His laugh started up, the one that sounded like a child utterly failing to contain his excitement. It was unmistakable, pure excitement and joy, as if he were getting all he ever wanted from the world. It unnerved everyone in the room, just as it always did. The cheering had risen after Rifki had been hit, but it died down to an awkward mumble as soon as he began laughing. Even the wolf was cautious to approach the apparently insane hyena. He kept his distance, fists still up and ready to strike. Rifki got back to his feet, a disturbing smile crossing his muzzle, his eyes lighting up as the adrenaline kicked in. He held his fists in a mocking way, mimicking the wolf.
The wolf rushed him again, but Rifki smacked his fist away, leaving the wolf wide open. As the attacker turned back, Rifki lunged fast at him, fist flying toward the defenseless wolf's face. The speeding fist connected with the front of his muzzle from the side, a sickening crack and crunch resounding throughout the now cheering bar. Blood poured from the wolf's mouth, and he was instantly on the ground, pain alone knocking him out. Rifki looked down at him with a dazed confusion, a kitten not understanding the result of ripping apart caught bird. His fist was already swelling, probably fractured from the mislaid punch.
The bar was again silent and the vixen was sobbing next to the unconscious lupine. Even Rifki didn't laugh. The patrons were shocked into silence, but he was just confused. Sure he meant to hit his jaw with a breaking blow, but the muzzle shot seemed to have been much more effective. The front half of the wolf's muzzle was bent at a disgusting angle, blood pouring out onto the already stained floor.
"Hah ok let's go. Right now. Go. Go go." Bloodbeak wasn't eager to stick around to deal with the cleanup or the cops, provided anyone bothered to even call them.
"Ok but I didn't mean to killim! Was jussa bad shot, 'tsall! Wai- wai... uhh wait I gotta pay." The hyena was obviously drunk, and the sudden end to the fight was like blue balls for his adrenaline rush. The bartender yelled something about a tab, and with that the two were gone.
After a quick visit to a 24 hour clinic and a confirmation that Rifki's fist was miraculously unbroken, they headed towards the hyena's place. The bar was bad enough, but Bloodbeak knew that the drunk's place was even worse. But there was no other choice. He sure as hell wasn't staying at Bloodbeak's place, but he didn't want the lump to go out drinking again and cause any more trouble.
With a hyena resting on his shoulder, Bloodbeak stumbled back to the house he would be forced to stay at for the night. As they pulled up to Rifki's house, a shadowy figure stepped out from behind a crumbling plaster pillar. A blade shone in the streetlight, the vandal's face hidden poorly by his hood. Some sort of feline.
"Hey Riff, I heard you fucked a guy up pretty bad tonight. Teach you not to fuck with us, man!" The cat lunged and Bloodbeak panicked, ducking out of the way and dropping the woozy hyena. Of course, Rifki was unamused.
"Man fuck off, 'dis my house, you fuck off. I'll ki-... kill you, 'kay?" He giggled sadistically to himself again, stumbling and waving for the attacker to come at him again. Bloodbeak was worried about his friend, though somehow impressed at the amount of shit he managed to deal with.
The cat tried a short jab but Rifki slapped his hand away quickly, deftly grabbing the attacker's head through the hood and twisting his neck, a snap even more sickening and lethal than the wolf experienced. The cat slumped to the ground, already dead. Had he been less drunk, Rifki would have played around more, dancing and wearing the cat down. But his current state only allowed him to make the most basic movements. He stumbled away and threw out his arms triumphantly, as if he was ready for the next fight. He turned around a few times before spotting the vulture again.
"Breakfast!" And with that the hyena stumbled and fell to the ground, passed out and leaving Bloodbeak to carry him inside. He dropped the lump on the couch and went back outside to examine the cat.
"Breakfast, huh? Well let's see what we can cook up..." Bloodbeak hauled the feline back inside, into the kitchen to prepare for tomorrow morning.