Disclaimer: I own nothing involved in this story unless I invented it myself. This is written for fun, not for profit. All forms of feedback eagerly accepted. Concrit is loved the most, but everything is welcome.
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh GX
Title: Way of the Hunt: Chapter 2: Prey
Characters: Broww, Huntsman of Dark World & Hell Kaiser of Ice
Word Count: chapter: 750||story: 1,500
Genre: Adventure, DramaRated: PG-13
Challenge: Written for the Diversity Writing Challenge, section C, #5, two-shot with both 'chapters' being exactly 750 words; Written for the GX Non-Flash Bingo, prompt #24, brown
Notes: This takes place in the world where Ryou is the Hell Kaiser of Ice, as he was the one taken by Daitokuji & Kagemaru, instead of Fubuki. This is set sometime after Ryou has gained his powers and before the Seven Stars attack.
Summary: Broww is the greatest huntsman that Dark World has ever seen. He can track any prey across the whole world. So he likes a challenge. And what challenge could be greater than prey that can fight back?

Hell Kaiser moved with the speed of both hunter and prey. If he slowed down, if he let Broww catch wind of him by sight or sound or scent, then he would lose. It had happened before. He knew it would happen again.

But not this time, not if he could help it. He didn't know if he could. His mastery of ice and snow wasn't as firm as he would've liked. That was why he walked in Dark World in the first place: to learn from Snoww, Magician of Dark World, who manipulated ice as he manipulated his deck.

Snoww would be very upset with him if he lost against Broww again. She did not take failure very well and as her student, it was part of his task to uphold her honor.

Ryou found these days he cared less and less for honor or respect. But he still needed to learn and until he'd mastered all of the skills Snoww could teach him, he would have to obey her.

Which meant defeating Broww in this hunt any way that he could. Regrettably, neither one of them was allowed to kill the other. Brron's command forbade it.

Too bad. I could like killing these people. He didn't like a single denizen of Dark World and he looked forward to the day when he could return to his own world. He'd never thought he'd miss blue skies the way that he did.

He dodged; another of Broww's arrows just barely skimmed against his forehead. A quick check told him he hadn't been cut; all to the good. Any mark he returned with would count against him. That was why he did his best to at least wound the Huntsman. The same rules held for him.

Ryou forgot how many times they'd run this course. It helped him refine his control of ice and his powers in general. He didn't know what it did for Broww, aside from giving him target practice.

Now that they'd seen one another, their tactics would change. Ryou remained hidden as much as he could; exposing himself to Broww's arrows without some kind of defense at hand would be stupidity. Ryou would claim to being many things, but stupid had never even come close to the list.

All of that passed through his mind in a single moment. Scarcely had the arrow slammed into a tree across the way before Ryou waved a hand, concentrating just so. Ice materialized a short distance away from him. Another tilt of his fingers and it flew directly toward Broww.

The Huntsman no more waited around for the strike than Ryou himself had. This time, however, Ryou's control improved, and his ice blade slashed into Broww's side. The thick liquid that served the monsters of Dark World for blood stained the bush the hunter stumbled into. That would count against him as well, leaving a trail for Ryou to follow.

With his free hand, Broww pulled a knife of his own out and aimed it toward Ryou. Ryou saw the move coming and returned to his cover, heading toward his opponent. This could be his best chance to end the hunt now and come as close as he was allowed to finishing off Broww. He could hear the other breathing heavily; had he injured him more than he thought?

It's like a duel, he reminded himself. He could have a trap waiting.

The sound of his own movement, which wasn't much to him and surely would be less to Broww, did cover a few other noises. Ryou knew the risk and took it. He suspected he should've done otherwise when a heavy hand landed on his shoulder, twisting him upward to stare into Broww's eyes.

"Victory," the Dark World Hunter claimed. Ryou slammed one hand upward, concentrating.

"For who?" he asked, the blade of his newly formed ice knife resting against Broww's stomach. If he pushed farther, he'd draw more than a little blood and the hunter knew it.

They stood like that for a few moments, before Broww finally stepped aside.

"A tie, then." Not the first they'd ever had, or the last, both knew. As Ryou's skill grew, the number increased.

Neither let their guard down. The game didn't truly end until they returned to Brron's castle.

But that was the way it always was. Hunter and hunted, prey and predator. One day one of them would be able to end the other. Until then, the game continued.

The End