Redemption Bracket: Tobias Stalt Vs Black Shadow

[Silence Sei]

Match starts 4-15-14 at 12:01AM. Good Luck!

[Tobias Stalt]

Dawn painted the field a deep orange as it crept over the land. The stench of rotting bodies and spilled blood railed against Tobias' senses as the soldier strode begrudgingly across a warzone in suspended animation. "This was the best idea he could conjure?" Tobias asked aloud, as if he expected an answer. Corpses afforded him hollow glances, but they offered poor company and unsatisfactory answers. "In the pissing middle of nowhere, and it smells like shit?" His grumbling ceased when a voice echoed through the ether, as though a god were stretching out to speak to him.

"Your opponent will enter the illusion soon, Master Stalt," he recalled the disjointed voice as one that belonged to an Ai'bron monk in the citadel itself. He had to hand it to the enigmatic sect of healers when it came to illusions. They were the absolute best. "The time sealing spell I've woven over the illusion will break momentarily and you will be in the middle of a recreation of the Battle of Gisela."

Tobias had studied well enough to curse aloud. "Gisela!?" He called out angrily, and he stared at the sky in defiance. "You mean I'm about to be overrun by demons and all manner of crazed...?" His words drowned beneath a piercing scream as the world around him blurred back into motion. In the distance, Tobias saw a swarm of dark entities as they smashed into a wall of men. Two armies, one of men and elves, and one naught but monsters.*

He stood within a day's walk of the bloodiest scene in history, and Tobias found himself at a loss. "He said it was to honor my victory," he muttered as he looked around for someone else out of place, "but I think he meant "to make sure it won't happen again." The morbid thought stole a chuckle from the soldier as he slipped his blade into his hand. "Here's to throwing it in his face."

Tobias blinked as a stray arrow race past his face, and he heard a sound that mirrored a chorus of snakes. In terror, Stalt stared skyward. A volley of arrows had begun to rain across the battle, indifferent to friend or foe. The soldier scrambled behind a wall of bodies that had been piled up, and he winced at the wet pop of arrows as they impaled cadavers. "This is bad," he gulped, "this is very, very bad."

He waited patiently for the volley to end, then glanced over at the forces interlocked. A score had fallen, but they battle raged on. It was as bloody as he had ever heard. "Gods..." Tobias did not envy the men who had led this battle at all; to resort to wholesale slaughter of both sides meant desparation, and it meant losses they could not afford but incurred anyway. "Focus, Tobias," he said to himself, "focus! There's an enemy here looking for me. I need to stay on my toes."

He tucked himself behind the wall of corpses again, and he quietly mapped out a plan. In the midst of a battle like this, his enemy was not the only thing he needed to stay mindful of. He hoped that he would spot his opponent before the inverse happened. Tobias idly ran his finger along the flat of his blade, and he skimmed the horizon for any sign of someone who seemed as out of place as he did.

[black shadow]

The battle of Gisela? Why here? Black Shadow thought to himself. A monk escorted Black Shadow to a small door, explaining the rules and scenery to him along the way. "There really are no rules here in this battle. Just win your fight. You will be placed in the battle of Gisela, as I'm sure you have already heard."

Oh, I've heard. I've heard how bad the battle ended and how many people died fighting. Black Shadow thought as he pulled out his bow.

"Now, you already know about us reviving you if you die so don't worry. Good luck." The monk said as he opened the door and allowed Black Shadow to enter the battle.

The brightly lit halls of the citadel suddenly turned to a deep orange color. The smell of death was easily noticed in the air. The horrifying sight of the demons fighting the elves and men, cutting them down without giving the men even a sliver of a chance on the front lines. Then the volley of arrows, death of anyone who stood in its path. The battle was worse than Black Shadow would have thought. Stay focused. Find your opponent and take him down before he even sees you coming. Black Shadow thought as he turned looking for someone who did not wear the steel suits of the men. AS he saw someone who looked out of place, he readied an arrow, aimed and fired. May this end the battle now so we don't have to watch this scene any longer.

[Tobias Stalt]

Tobias heard a terrible scream and his head jolted round. An arrow had skewered the neck of a man who sought to flee the battlefield, and he had sunk to his knees as his blood gushed from both entry and exit wounds. "Why the hell would you shoot an innocent man?" The enraged, sorrowful cry came from a woman not two paces behind, who would have been the next likely target for the stray arrow. "We just wanted to leave," she sobbed as she fell to her knees and embraced the hollowed shell of the dying man. "We just wanted..."

Tobias braced a hand against the bulwark of bodies and swallowed back animosity; such a cruel act depicted true evil. The soldier felt a tremble through his flesh and down to his bone. Fire had set upon his blood, and his mind was as much a war as the battle behind him. His eyes darted wildly, seeking the offending archer. When they fell on the Shadowy character, he knew that the man was his opponent. "Those people are already dead in our time," he managed to say though his carefully guarded rage, "there is no call for slaughtering the innocent, even in a memory."

He rose slowly and strode toward Black Shadow with the backdrop of hell on earth playing behind him. Tobias was a bastion of stoicism painted there, his expression one of cool, collected thought despite his inner struggle not to rush forward. He saw the bow and knew that it would take quick thinking to avoid being mottled with holes. He looked over his opponent and knew it would not be over quickly.

"Your name," Tobias called out, "before you die?"

[black shadow]

Black Shadow watched as the man fell lifelessly to the hard dirt. This was no enemy of his, it was a normal farmer. Stupid... I know not to shoot without being sure it's my enemy. Black Shadow thought to himself as a woman began screaming in his face. Then the smell of death reached his nostrils. The smell of a freshly murdered man. The smell that did one thing to Black Shadow. It set him off. Pulling another arrow from his quiver, he readied and fired, killing the woman in front of him. He body fell lifelessly on top of her fallen husband. Then Black Shadow heard the voice of another man. "Your name, before you die?"

A question... Why do they always ask me questions? Black shadow thought to himself. He turned to see a man not wearing the usual armor of the elves and men. This had to be his opponent. Black Shadow readied another arrow, aiming it at his opponent. At this range, it would be a sure hit. At this range, he could easily kill his opponent. But something pulled at his mind. Aiming the arrow just in front of the man's foot, he released the arrow. As it made contact with the dried out dirt, the arrow made no sound, almost snapping from how hard the ground was.

Black Shadow's opponent stopped for a second and looked at Black Shadow. He then put his bow away and unsheathed his sword. Black Shadow then pointed at the man, as if gesturing to him for his name. Dang honor. You have never helped me before, why should this be any different?

[Tobias Stalt]

Before his eyes, the world ran red. Almost on cue the woman fell beside her husband, her life ebbing out of her beleaguered body. Tobias had heard the powerful impact as the arrow ripped through her, but the sight left him devoid of a response. There was nothing left to say to a man who was this far gone.

In his shaking grip, the blade thirsted for vengeance. An arrow embedded in the soil beside him left a dull impression somewhere in his mind that there had been danger, but it was now gone. His enemy flashed steel, stowed away a bow, and gestured for his name. "Did you ask their names?" Tobias asked in a hollow, sardonic voice.

Theirs would be a battle between nameless men.

He wasted no time on the charge; explosions rocked the war torn Gisela Plains and screams wracked their addled minds, flesh and ruin flew like shrapnel inches from his face. Tobias hefted his blade high as he ripped across the few feet left between them, and his weapon barrelled down toward Black Shadow.

Beneath them, bones crunched and blood splattered anew. Tobias eschewed finesse for brutal efficiency, both hands now tightly on the grip of his blade. He grunted his body's defiance out in a loud snort and braced for the inevitable impact.

A cannon cried out. The world shuddered, then fell silent. Tobias could almost make out the barked orders from the human commanders, strangled through the shellshock. Chaos ruled the world, and men were fast losing their last foothold.

[black shadow]

So it begins. Black Shadow thought to himself. Taking his defensive stance, he braced himself for the impact. The two swords clashed, causing the sharp ring of steel against steel to ring through the battle field.

Black Shadow could faintly hear the sounds of men being cut down by the forces of the demons. They would, lose this battle, and they didn't even know it yet. The red background grew a darker shade of red by the second. Night would surely fall within the next few minutes.

Black Shadow looked at his enemy, the two now locked in a sword battle. The hate for Black Shadow could be seen within Tobias' eyes for a mile away. Good. Anger. Just what I want to see. Black Shadow thought to himself. A slight smirk grew across his face. Hoping the anger would cause his enemy to slip up, Black Shadow pushed on his sword with all the strength he could muster, and pushed a kick for his enemies leg.

[Tobias Stalt]

His blade was rebuffed. The impact belched an abrupt wail as Tobias staggered back and fought with his weapon for control; he expertly redirected the wild swing into a circular arc and brought the sword to his side as his opponent kicked swiftly toward his leg. Tobias took a breath as he sliced his weapon upward again, this time in a collision course with the offending appendage- if Black Shadow were that eager to lose a leg, Tobias felt obliged to accommodate him.

There were several things that they had taught him about swordsmanship in Alerar beyond simple physics; the body moves in many specific ways, but it is also limited in the same way. In a sword fight, the weapon ought be only the sword. "This is because," the instructor had said, "the body is frail in comparison to steel. Blades rip through flesh and sinew. If you're eager to lose a hand, try to punch someone who is armed. Feel free to test the theory if you're feeling bold." Tobias shuddered at the memory of the ancient Elf lifting a hand that was missing three fingers, and the wince showed on his face as he swung through.

His feet dug in and sank into the ocean of viscera, and a war horn sounded the retreat. Howling wind blew over the two men, and Tobias gritted his teeth through the acrid aroma of blood that assailed his senses. Though both men were fresh and rested, the realism of their arena wore Tobias thin quickly.

Memories of the siege of Eiskalt salted the still fresh wound and combined with the disdain he felt toward the heartless monster in human form before him. If not for his experience and the training he had received, all of this might have been overwhelming. "The world does not wait for anyone, Stalt," the Tactical Officer had told him as they reviewed the terrestrial layout of Eiskalt, "thoughts, emotions, deaths, points of view- everything is always changing. A good strategist changes with it."

The smoke cleared high above the battlefield, and for a moment, the sun blazed through in its immortal triumph. With the darkness abolished, the wretched scene of lifeless bodies and their scattered fluids stood timeless testament to the true horrors of war.

[black shadow]

Black Shadow realized his mistake the second he threw the kick. The sword of his enemy now flew towards his outstretched leg. If not for his enhanced speed, the wound would surely be greater. Black Shadow snapped his foot against the ground as fast as he could. The sword of Tobias slit the top of his leg leaving a small cut. A stinging pain surged up his leg, causing him to almost fall to his knees. Smarter than most. This battle won't be as easy as I first thought. Black Shadow thought to himself.

He searched for a new arena. This battle field would surely give his opponent the advantage. Black Shadow was an archer after all, and this field was no place for an archer. Black Shadow then found what he was looking for... Trees, a tree line, the forest... This was practically his home for almost three years. He grabbed one of his steel shafted arrows from his quiver and threw it at Tobias as hard as he possibly could. The arrow went flying through the air towards his enemy almost like a throwing knife, but before he saw if it hit, Black Shadow turned and began to run. Putting away his sword and pulling his bow from his back, Black Shadow ran as fast as he could. He would surely reach there before his opponent was even close.

The trees were a lot larger than Black Shadow had first expected, some growing up to three hundred feet tall. Looming over Black Shadow's body, the trees felt as though they would fall from ontop of him. The darkness that had been slowly creeping over the battlefield now engulfed it, but the battle behind Black Shadow had not stopped. Screams of men being slaughtered could be heard for miles as the demons cut through the lines like a knife through butter. The men did not stand a chance, and few of them knew that.

Returning his attention back to the trees, Black Shadow ran into the forest. Finding the nearest small tree he could, he climbed as high as he could. Taking an arrow from his quiver, Black Shadow calmed his mind. Looking from where he came, he could see very little, the ground barely visible from where he was. A thick Fog rolled in, and the forest grew to be even less visible. Focusing his energy of sound, Black Shadow listened for his opponent. The only way he could possibly attack now would be to, as he was trained when younger, use the sounds of footsteps to locate, aim, and kill his enemy.

When he was a boy, Black Shadow had to use nothing but sound to go hunting. His eyes were blindfolded and he could only hear his target. He completed this task faster than anyone else has ever done, and because of this, he was crowned King of the Bow, an honorable title within his country. Closing his eyes, he listened for the slightest movement that would send his arrow flying.

[Tobias Stalt]

Blood gushed from the freshly open wound and sprayed against the pale white of Tobias' face; his opponent struggled with effort to halt his momentum and succeeded in preventing the loss of a limb, but the soldier had drawn first blood. When his opponent hesitated, Tobias took the time to collect himself. All of his hesitation fell away, and he leveled the sword toward his opponent.

In a blur, the Black Shadow snapped his arm back for an arrow, and Tobias thrust his sword toward the man in futile attempt to stop it. The metallic shaft blurred out toward Tobias' face, and he pulled his blade back to defend. He stumbled back and fumbled for a moment, but ultimately managed to keep the weapon from wounding him, but the damage was still done.

His enigmatic enemy was sprinting toward cover. Tobias spat a curse and took off after him, several seconds behind. He made it to the tree line and ducked behind one of the thicker trunks for cover, careful to take a few moments to calm his heart rate and catch his breath. There were far too many factors in play, and the opponent was a natural hunter on top of that.

He held his blade and cradled the blade in his right hand, and he wiped the blood away with a gentle caress. "I need to get to him before he can shoot me," Tobias muttered between breaths, "and now, fog. Wonderful." The roiling mist billowed in and obscured his vision faster than his mind desired to comprehend.

His eyes closed slowly and Tobias caught himself praying silently. "As if the gods would help me now," he laughed. It was a bitter laugh, and echoed through the trees in the brief silence that had fallen over the battlefield. The sensation chilled Tobias. "No," he said, "no gods tread here."