Caius was known for his rashness but it had never been a problem before. When he had announced himself like he had, it was a poor move on his part, but he had honestly expected less of a fight than what he was currently being presented with. At the sight of the fire, he turned sharply and put distance between himself and the fire. After all, ice dragons were weak against fire without proper defense. He eyed the flames, knowing that he would need to be careful unless he wanted to lose.<br/><br/>He snarled, snapping his jaws threateningly as he prepared to counteract. He circled around, careful not to get hit as he tried to find a weakness. Movement from the corner of his eye captured his attention and he watched as the princess ordered for the fire to be contained. He was confused for a moment. Were they underestimating him? Taking pity on him because he was alone? That wouldn't do. He snarled again, watching as the princess approached. He had never fought her before and even if he had, it would have been years ago. Surely she was stronger than the other phoenixes? If he could just take her out, he figured that he could gain control of the battle and send her guards scattering. With her out of the way, they could finally conquer these damned fire birds.<br/><br/>He watched as she transformed into his phoenix form and was startled to see her flames were blue. Blue flames meant they were way hotter than normal flames. It suited her. He released a roar, taking the challenge and dove towards her, intending to take her out quickly. However, things didn't work as he planned and she was a lot quicker than he thought she would be. He saw the incoming attack but before he could get away from it, he felt a searing pain and he cried out in pain. He was unable to stay aloft with only one good wing and he was already crashing to the ground. He landed with a loud crash, creating a crater. His form began to change, icy mist seeping out around and blocking his transformation from sight. He was now in his human form and curled up. Immediately, ice began to spring to life, forming around him into an icy, protective dome as he tried to get his bearings back in order. Damn, that had hurt.<br/><br/>Knowing that his ice would hold long enough for him to recover, he focused on pushing his body up. He looked a bit beat up from his crash landing, but he pushed the pain away and forced himself to his feet. He drew a sword that was at his waist and looked up towards her, ice blue eyes trying to pinpoint where she was. Was she still in her phoenix form?