"Shit!"
As the creature's neck lashed forward, James hurled himself to the side, grunting as his body rolled across the sandy floor of the arena. Springing to his feet, he watched in surprise as Phoenix took the blow that was meant for him, reducing his shield to scrap in the process. Huh. Didn't expect that.
Then again, James also wasn't expecting their foe to suddenly sprout a pair of heads after ripping off its original one. Grimacing, the thug backed away a few paces, watching as his allies pelted the bizarre beast with blow after blow. Though they certainly weren't lacking in enthusiasm, the other party members weren't exactly powerhouses; their attacks, at least from James' perspective, seemed to do little more than annoy the Hydra, its twin jaws hissing in rage as energy arrows and lead pipes assailed it.
Tch, they really went all out, didn't they? Hydra's weren't exactly common creatures. Big, ugly, and mean as hell, they were often the subject of local legends and scary stories; they weren't supposed to be cooped up in places like this to be used for target practice!
Still, when the going gets tough... Gritting his teeth, James charged forward, fists clenched and thoughts racing. Ducking as Mr. Bom's pipe whistled past overhead, the vagabond snaked through the weaving necks and mouthfuls of fangs, advancing until he found himself pressed against the beast's scaly hide. With little else to do, James began to circle around the creature, bobbing, weaving, and rolling about to avoid its massive limbs.
As he strafed and moved, the thug showered a series of flickering punches into his foe; by canceling the force the hide exerted on his hands, James ensured that his fists would remain undamaged while reducing the Hydra's resistance to almost nil.