Perhaps it was because he had been only half listening to the kid or it could have been that he hadnâ€™t expected the scrawny rat before him to actually make a move. It was probably because it had been a while since someone had enough skill and power with knives had battled him. Regardless of the reason or reasons Xander had managed to catch the blade of a sword in his left shoulder.<br/><br/>It had been the first blade that had pierced him and he decided the reason was shock as he rather gracefully dodged every other blade that came flying in his direction. It was his jaguar that allowed his large frame to move the way he was, spinning to the right to avoid a blade, dropping his upper body down to miss another, twisting to the left and returning to his upright position to dodge another. One blade did cut his leather jacket but it didnâ€™t knick skin.<br/><br/>Once he had semi-successfully defended against the blades he returned his eyes to the fae. His eyes had dilated and the pupils turned to slights somewhere in the middle of the mayhem, his fangs had dropped from his gums and were bared at Meko. His claws were the last to come out as he grabbed the hilt of the knife that had embedded itself in his shoulder and ripped it out. The near excruciating pain didnâ€™t register in his brain; instead the adrenaline used it to fuel his anger.<br/><br/>Xander took the time to shrug out of his favorite leather jacket but he never removed his eyes from the kid. The blood from his shoulder had already stained a large portion of his white t-shirt but the wound itself was already mending. â€œThat was my favorite jacket.â€ He snarled as he started towards Meko aiming a right hook at the fragile looking jaw while simultaneously bringing his left knee up into the kids gut, using every bit of his strength.<br/><br/>-0-0-0-0-0<br/>Taylor looked up from the chopping board where an onion was resting half diced up in little squares. He knew something was wrong; Meko hadnâ€™t walked out of the passage yet. Sure he knew his little warrior was tired from the workout and that the cubs may have given him a little trouble rounding them up but it shouldnâ€™t have taken this long. He dropped his knife onto the board and turned around to stare at the open doors in the floor. He nimbly walked over to the opening and closed his eyes focusing solely on trying to find the footsteps of his chargeâ€¦his friend.<br/><br/>What he heard sent a chill down his spine; it was so faint that he could almost fool himself into believing it had simply imagined it. He didnâ€™t bother with the stairs instead he dropped down the whole and landed in a roll the second he popped up he was sprinting down the passage. His boots echoed off the metal until he entered the dirt portion of the hall. â€œFuck fuck fuck fuck.â€ He snarled as he approached the door to the woods and saw it was closed. He took them at a full sprint and slammed his shoulder into them.<br/><br/>Taylorâ€™s heart sank deeper in his chest as the wood budged up but were forced back down by something. â€œDamn it!â€ He allowed himself to yell as he looked up at the door. A moment later he spun on his toes and barreled back to the other end of the passage, the panic that had settled over his brain didnâ€™t stop him from grabbing a gun as he passed through the arsenal and flew up the stairs. He nearly broke the front door off its hinges as he threw it open and headed towards the training field.