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♦ 11-26-2022 | After the Fall All-Ranks Tournament, Nero received a challenge grant from Morgan LaFey and proceeded to challenge Nayun for FireStar. Stating it was a necessity and nothing else the challenge was issued and Nayun declared that she would fight any opponent who offered a worthy sport. The opening rounds on the night had the challenger claiming two points clean in a combo. The lead would be short lived before Nayun responded with two more points to tie the score up. The lead shifted one point in the challenger's favor before Nayun struck back once more and then found match point with a swift evasion. Nero dodged her next kick sending it to Sudden Death where they postured for several more rounds on a ledge before Nero claimed the first match in a narrow victory. The second match would prove to be the opposite right out the gate: adapting to the previous match Nayun reveled in the pressure and thrill and opened the gate out to a three point unanswered lead in three rounds. As in the previous bout, Nero struggled back finding two points to answer Nayun's rally. She would score once more to bring herself to match point. The challenger would get one back before Nayun closed the curtain on this second match with a sweep of her own. The third and final bout was fought in the pond where both fighters had effectively given up one arm; Nayun scored in the opening round and that would the be the final point she took on the night. In the following six rounds Nero took five unanswered points and provide the outlier on the evening. In three bouts, 5-4 in 11, 5-3 in 9 and 5-1 in 7, Nero claimed FireStar. | ♦ 2-20-2023 | With a coin flipped an answer would be soon given.. IceDancer or FireStar, IceDancer or FireStar — and FireStar was chosen. Mira Burke issued challenge for the Fire Opal's holder and soon defender Nero Zhir, with the latter not too thrilled. Nero offered Mira a chance to simply rescind but the challenger rebuffed, stating that her resolve has never been stronger; a statement that was proven wrong by the challenge night results. While the first of two matches began on Mira's favor it would be Nero's own resolve that overpowered his opponent as a tie in the eighth round saw the scales of sudden death tip in his corner in the ninth. This victory cemented Mira's fate, as Nero dominated in the following match by only allowing his opponent a single round before finishing with a 5 - 1 victory in eight. | ♦ 5-20-2023 | The second to challenge Nero would be the bold Droet. At first he thought to challenge another Opal, perhaps to taste the power of something new instead of his old partner FireStar. It could have very well been like the drawing of a moth to a flame but the challengers choice was made and the written challenge posted to the board; FireStar was calling. As the challenge night came and passed the prophecy spoken by Nero should have been heeded: "You should have waited". Nero's second defense came much like the first, in two matches, with the first being a 5 - 3 victory in 11 rounds while the second was much more closer in sudden death — yet that is where Nero's fire blazed as he achieved victory once more to close out the defense with a 5 - 4 in 8 finish. | ♦ 01-20-2024 | “You need to harden your resolve,” came Nero’s consistent refrain when Kruger “The Anvil” Allen posted his challenge for FireStar in service of a personal journey. Ever the showman, The Anvil arrived at gunpoint, painted gold and dragging a war-torn globe behind him to test his mettle in the Boiler. In the first match, Nero reach three points in three rounds with only one sacrificed to a trade. Kruger managed a clean point, but with Nero holding onto the lead, the following two trades were not enough to claim the first. A punch to the throat started the bloodier second match, putting Nero on a defensive backfoot while he struggled to regain composure. With the score at 3-1 and a trade in the next round, Nero closed the gap to 4-3 with a timely upper cut, but it was Kruger’s superman punch that made him the first challenger to force a third match. Nero proved to be the more resolute in the end and surrendered only a single point in the third match. At 5-4 in seven, 3-5 in nine, and 5-1 in six, Nero secured this third defense of the red Opal. | ♦ 06-05-2024 | Eager to climb into the upper echelon of Duel of Fists ranks and begin her collection of the Opals, Gillette Brook chose FireStar as her first target. Nero readily accepted, and the two met a week and change later to settle the red Opal’s fate. Nero landed the first point in match one, and though Gillette tied the score in the next round with a jab, it would be her last point earned. The second match began much like the first, alternating between Nero and Gillette scoring points respectively. A flashy jump-kick from Gillette saw them tied at 2-2 before a trade of blows brought them to 3-3. Nero pulled ahead in the next two rounds with some defensive maneuvering to secure his second win. In two consecutive matches at 5-1 in 6, and 5-3 in 7, Nero kept his grasp firmly on FireStar. | ♦ 09-03-2024 | After taking a shot at IceDancer a couple months earlier and emerging empty handed, Kruger “The Anvil” Allen circled back around for another shot at FireStar. Nero accepted, citing interest in his challenger’s development since their last bouts. The first match was a swift and precise affair. Nero went low around The Anvil’s defense, setting the train of consecutive points into motion that ensured the Opal holder would be the first, and only one on the board. Though Nero caught first blood again, the second match proved to be a muddier fight. Tricky moves, defensive posturing, Nero’s flaring temper and a see-saw lead brought the match to an extended sudden death lasting three whole rounds before The Anvil ended it with a straight punch, and took the second. The final match went as quickly as the first, with Nero scoring three unanswered points before The Anvil claimed one in the fourth. It, and a trade, would be the only points the Opal allowed from his opponent before closing it out. In three matches, 5-0 in 6, 4-5 in 14, and 5-2 in 6, Nero successfully defended FireStar for the fifth time. |
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