Chapter one: Old dog

The old man stepped quietly forward, facing the hulking, young brute with a calm unmatched by the watching crowd. Leaning forward on his cane, he turned his wrinkled brow up to acknowledge his towering opponent, in his eyes was a gentle discipline that none could fathom. He smiled without humour, his cheeky grin a mocking reflection of the confident swagger wielded by the muscled goliath. He spoke but one word and, soft though it was, it echoed down the street, bouncing between the walls of the shop fronts lining the avenue.
“Come.”
Surprise crossed the face of the warrior facing him, followed swiftly by a moment of failing confidence and finally the grimace of rage.
“You dare!?”
The big mans words, though roared in the face of the wizened dwarf, weren't audible to those at the back of the crowd, sounding merely like the muffled cry of an angry herd beast. The crowd watched with growing anticipation, but a sense of unease. If the old man were concerned by the obvious disadvantage at which he stood, he didn't show it. He merely stood facing the screaming giant, his face cracked in a thousand places by the small smile he sported. He coughed, a small clearing-of-the-throat, and once again met the warrior's stare before speaking again.
“I dare.”
The great man stood, straight-backed, to his full height, staring angrily down his nose at the diminutive figure who dared defy his obvious superiority. All who watched could feel the tension radiating from him in hot waves. He was hesitant, he could squash this fly without strain, but where would be the glory in such a victory? This little man was more than twice his age and less than half his stature. How would the gods and ancients look upon such an act?
The old man chuckled into his chest at the giants hesitation, his white, wispy hair falling forward, covering an eye as he looked back up to shake his head at the colossus. Smiling again, the old man turned his back and began walking slowly back into the crowd.

This the warrior could not permit, the insolence! Old man or not, no one turns their back on a challenge issued against a champion of the Pagoda of Elements. The man grunted and reached his scarred hand out to grab the old man's shoulder, but the little elder was quicker than he looked, spinning on his heel he knocked the bigger man's hand aside with the knob of his cane. The surprise had barely begun to show in the face of the warrior when the old man dropped the tip of his cane to the floor, using the length of polished wood to vault his body up and around, his foot slamming into the stomach of the giant, doubling him over and knocking the breath from his lungs.
Dropping back to his feet the old man adopted a fighting stance, legs spread and arms held up, cane gripped firmly, waiting for the inevitable retaliation. The giant was clutching his stomach, still bent over half, coughing and choking he spoke through gritted teeth.
“That will cost you old man!” struggling, he stood again, to his full height, “A lucky strike is all that was, I wasn't going to hurt an old man like you, just make you bow in apology. Such an action could still save you, if you're quick about it.”
Not moving from his fighting stance, certainly not bowing to the larger man, the old one merely shook his head and again spoke but one word.
“You”