The Pirate and the Mercenary, Dagwyn vs Morwen

[Dagwyn]

With sand crushing under his boots Dagwyn walked into the arena, taking a deep breath to feel the fresh air in his lungs. "What a beautiful day" he said to himself, shooting a quick glance at the sun, which was now floating high on the sky. He had switched out his vest and coat for some leather armour, which covered his upper body. His wrists and ankles had been bandaged for support, and his leather gloves were fastened tight.

The blunted sword was positioned at his back, with it's handle protruding from behind his right shoulder, making it easy to quickly draw the blade. While it's craftsmanship wasn't anything near Wargfang's, it would do for the battle. Slowly he tied his bandanna around his forehead. "All set and ready".

He threw two quick punches in a straight arc, then followed up with an elbow. Moving his feet quickly, he kick forward, than sideways, then executed a back kick to an imaginary opponent. A warm body could move faster and was less likely to get hurt while executing quick actions. A headbut and palm thrust finished the exercise. He did not expect his opponent to fight fair, so neither would he.

But what could be called a fair fight anyway? A battle was a battle, and the only fair ones he had ever seen was those between two with the goal of settling a dispute. He pondered this for a moment then turned to the other side of the arena. His own fight wasn't about settling a dispute, neither was it about life or death. He needed money, plain and simple. And this might be a good way to acquire it. As long as I don't end up on the ground, face flat in the sand.

[Kristen]

(ooc: Hehe, I always forget, is there an audience? And sorry if my post was long =3)

A black boot revealed itself out of the shadows. It meticulously wriggled out, pulling with it a leg and then a body. A young pirate looked up, examaning the arena that encompassed her and her opponent.

Morwen raised an eyebrow at his excersises. her lips curled at end as she smiled, was he bluffing or really trying to warm up? She shrugged the question out of her mind and continued her journey across sand-covered arena.

As she saw the last of his moves, she gleaned the information he just gave her. The last was an arm thrust. Okay, so if he isn't bluffing, he'll come at me with his hands as well... Little thoughts like that boiled up in her mind, slowly like a pot of water over a fire.

The sun's rays washed over the land, showering the isolated plants that struggled to to poke out of the sand. Tiny clouds brushed the sun with their tops and gently pushed on, giving no shade this day. Although, the light breeze would somewhat fan the arena with it's gift, but not enough to keep Morwen from sweating. There was a small hiatus in the wind's work. It ceased, no longer existing in the arena. Morwen held her breath, anxious for the wind to come back, and as it did, the releived pirate continued her walk across the fairly large arena, ready to meet her apponent in the center.

Tiny beads already appeared at the base of her neck, her pony tail lightly brushing them away as it swung like a horse's. She drew in her breath and exhaled, the warmth filling her lungs, seeming to only result in more beads of sweat. One finally risked the precarious journey down her neck and she swiped it with her hand. Drawing her hand back to her side, her thin armor clinked. It rested over her shoulders and tied in front of her coller bone. A thin breastplate was hooked around her and she had on protective gloves. Morwen sighed as she remembered she was wearing those beastly gloves. Sweat would be pouring out uncontrolably from her hands as she would soon swing and thrust.

The gloves easily slipped off her hands and were thrown onto the ground. they would be more of a distraction than a protection in this weather. Her head raised high into the air as if she would confidently attack anyone. Morwen probably would face a king, if she had to.

The weather seemed like a penance, but Morwen pushed that thought aside. Nina had told her the god's didn't look at her as a lesser and there were no punishments taking place. Life just moved on, decided by the person living it and only that person.

Out of no where, the wind struck the land at an opportune moment. Morwen thanked the gods and finally faced her opponent. She was given his name before entering the arena; Daqwyn. She had never met him before, which is obvious because it was no small world. Morwen would be the first to share her voice; "That's an old trick," she said with a smile, refering to his palm thrust.

[Dagwyn]

(ooc: Let's have an audience. And the post was great)

"An old trick that can be surprisingly effective when used at the right time." Dagwyn smiled back at Morwen, examining her from top to bottom. She doesn't exactly look like a berserker. This will probably be a contest of skill rather than raw power. He bowed quickly in a sign of respect. The spectators were silent, watching them expectingly. They're probably wondering when the violence begins. Quite of few of them were looking slightly disappointed and grumpy. Dagwyn justed smiled at them, which was probably just irritating them even more.

Sweat had appeared on his neck, as well as any other place where it usually appeared. Dagwyn took this as a good sign, it signaled that his body was ready to move. At last he stretched his back a little, then looked Morwen straight in the eyes. His arm moved to his back and he unsheathed his sword, and then he moved into a combat stance. The sword felt familiar in his hand, and he swung it in a straight line in front of himself, enjoying the sensation. "I think now would be the right time to start, unless you feel otherwise."

[Kristen]

Morwen coced her head at his respect. That's never happened.., she thought. Morwen's opponents had always treated her like dirt. Maybe it was because they were thristy for her blood. ALthough.. one opponent stood out in her mind, but she shook the thought away.

Never really bowing much in her life, Morwen tilted her head head and lowered her back. The pirate sucked back a laugh and bit her tongue from exploding. She knew she looked very stupid the way she bowed but many years of sucking back her emotions allowed her to keep back the laugh.

"I'm ready," she said and spun around, her footing spinning her a little further from him. As her body took on the turn, she grabbed for her cutlass. Her moves weren't very pretty, but they were effective. Maybe that fit the way she thought of herself. Not very pretty on the inside or the outside. If her actions weren't pretty either, then what was? Her emotions. Which weren't in her inside, for that's not where she kept them most of the time.

Facing Dagwyn onc eagain, she gripped tighter on her weapon. This will be interesting.., she thought. The crowd looked bored. But the audience should know by now, not everyone looks at a fight as entertainment, Maybe selfish people look at wars that way. ut not Morwen.

[Dagwyn]

He smiled at her bow, scratching his nose lightly. Dagwyn believed that opponents should show each other at least a small amount of respect, and therefore tried to bow as often as he could in order keep heated feelings and aggression to a minimum. His eyes widened slightly as she spun into position, her moves discarding flashiness for pure effect. "I'm ready." A slight whisper erupted amongst the crowd, they now knew that things were about to start, and many stretched forward to get a better look.

Dagwyn drew air into his lungs trough his nose, and exhaled trough his mouth. Slowly he spread his legs and bent his knees, allowing for balance and quick movement. His left hand was kept open in front of him, while his right hand clutched the handle of his sword. "Very well, I think the crowd is getting rather impatient. Let us give them a fight to remember." A fight to remember indeed. A droplet of sweat ran down his cheek, but his body was completely relaxed. The calm before the storm.

A lonely hawk sailed over the arena, sending out a lonely scream towards the sky. It's keen eyes caught the sight of the two fighters, and a strange curiosity crept into it's heart. A few flap of it's wings and a dive later it was sitting atop of one of the stone pillars in the fighting pit, snapping it's beak and cleansing it's feathers of whatever was stuck in them.

Suddenly Dagwyn bolted forward, letting out a loud yell. Dust and sand was thrown into the air in small clouds where his boots hit the ground, as he threw his legs forward into a slide tackle, keeping his sword ready for drawing.

[Kristen]

Morwen nodded to his words, still in position to strike or defend. The pirate was oblivious that another spectator decided to view their battle as she focused in on his arms that would be ready to grab for his sword any moment. So he takes his body's strength before his chosen weapon. But there was no more time to think. The only words that would enter into her mind from now on would be those of strategy and her abilities. Not to mention, gleaning his strategies and abilities.

He tilted his body into a slide tackle, coming at her near her leg's joints. As all battles are, this one would be quick. She needed to strike as quickly as he started off and make effective moves before her strength is drained from her body. This was the only thing in life Morwen rained for. Nothing else. Now was the time to bring out her years of training.

Dust bellowed into the air.

Morwen pulled her sword close to her body to avoid it from wildly hanging in the air. She picked up her right leg and twirled on her left, spiraling to the side and away from Dagwyn. Her right foot clumsily stomped on the ground to stop her body from losing balance. Just as soon as she stopped, she took off with a few steps to come up from behind him, her sword still hugging next to her body.

[Dagwyn]

Damn, was a word that sang in Dagwyn’s mind as the tackle was dodged, Morwen moving out of sight. He moved his legs and rolled forward into a kneeling position. Don’t tell me she is!? The thought had barely formed in the mercenary’s head before he spun around, ripping his sword out of the scabbard. Behind me…of course. I'll have to come up with something better than a frontal slide tackle. He twirled his sword once before bringing it into guard position.

The crowd was now paying full attention, some shouting while others were debating about who would win. The hawk blinked and let out a high pitched yell, watching the fighters curiously. It had seen activity like this before, but that had always ended in bloodshed and death. Why didn't they try to kill each other? The bird couldn't understand, and cocked its head slightly to the side. Would the winner eat the defeated one?

Dagwyn slid forward, bringing his sword down in a chopping motion as he moved. He followed up with a low kick aimed at Morwen's right knee, which in return was followed by a sidestepping slash aimed at the left shoulder. Dust engulfed Dagwyn's boots as he attacked, following his left leg into the air as he aimed a side kick towards the pirate's stomach.

[Kristen]

What the..

Dagwyn was flying everywhere. His limbs were positioned to strike her all over her body. With every hit she endured, her body would weaken and would be ripe for the taking. She couldn't start off the fight with a weak body, let alone a weak heart for hope.

Although this was a serious battle, it wasn't one for the taste of blood or the satisfaction of death, but for setting one's name deeper into the stone and gathering information to use for a real war.

First his left leg aimed for her right leg's joint. Then his sword approached her right shoulder. Milliseconds after, his other leg targeted her stomach, one of the weakest spots. If he managed to hit her right in the center, she would fall back, the wind knocked out of her. Her body would just be asking for a sword to poke her at her neck. She couldn't let that happen. To substitute all the words for a planning ahead thoughts, her mind boiled up images of her lying on the ground with a sword pointed toward her.

First seeing his left leg, she rotated her body away from it, taking one spin counter-clockwise. Her right arm, that gripped the sword, would be of no effect to protect her if she spun that way. Morwen switched her weapon to her left hand while spinning. The motion was quicker than a blink. Lifting her left elbow in the air so her sword now stuck out parallel to her body, Morwen stopped with legs apart, her sword still in action.

Quickly, everything happened.

Her left arm raised for a quick cut. The sword slashed down to protect her left shoulder, let alone the rest of her body. He would have to gather energy to push against her sword when the metal would strike, hopefully distracting his kicks. If his legs maneuvered around her spin and repositioned their aim, he wouldn't have nearly as much energy to block her sword as he is capable of gathering.

The question was, how much energy did this guy posses?