The glove slap of honor. (Closed to Judorne)

[Christoph]

It was a lively night at the Silver Boar Tavern. Tables full of regulars and strangers alike were full of activity as the patrons talked, gambled, and just relaxed. Well-endowed barmaids walked from table to table, passing out food and ale and displayed their assets. The welcoming orange light of a roaring fireplace reached every corner of the hall, filling the tavern with warmth and a feeling of well-being.

All along the walls, portraits of various men and women were hung. These ranged from legendary heroes, to city nobles, and to the tavern’s current owner. Others appeared to be nothing more than pictures of particularly faithful customers. And in the far corner of the establishment, a certain familiar, brown haired chef sat, despite his lack of the hooded black cloak and brooding expression that were the typical prerequisites for such locations.

Chris yawned and stretched out over the back of his chair. He gazed through window at the setting sun and settled into his chair, his chef hat and a mug of frothy ale in front of him. Rubbing his young sandpaper-like face and glancing around the room, the chef was finally comfortable enough to relax. For one of the first times since he’d left his home in Salvar for a culinary-related business trip, there wasn’t anyone or anything in his immediate vicinity trying to arrest him, kill him, or eat his brains. He was going to enjoy it while he could. All that was missing was a good barroom brawl; Chris hadn’t had one of those in a long time.

Then he had an epiphany. If he wanted to have fun, what was he doing lurking in the corner? Classy, crowded taverns such as the Silver Boar were made drinking fine ale and for flirting with beautiful women. It was time that he stopped neglecting the latter. It only took a moment for his skilled eyes to spot a suitable target. She was a busty, raven-haired woman with a small nose and a bored expression. The only problem was that she already had company.

[Edward Judorne]

Edward had just arrived in Radasanth from his home island of Sirvano. He had been on his way to the citadel when he heard his stomach growl. He hadn't eaten anything in the last twelve hours. Deciding that he a battle could wait he had turned into the local tavern. It was quite a busy place, which likely meant that it had good food. Edward sat down next to the raven-haired beauty and smiled as he looked up at the various portraits of other princes. He couldn't help but brag to the woman next to him about his accomplishments. She looked like she needed a good story anyway.

"You know, I'm a prince in my own right. I can't say I'm as well known as some of these others, but I'll bet I have done more to help out the community than any of them. I've seen hell from the inside and kept the demons from escaping to the surface world, with a little help. I also have defeated a dragon, but I must admit, I got lucky in that respect. I've protected everyone in the world from being turned to stone, once again though, that was with a bit of help from my friends. I don't deal with politics, if I can avoid it, but can you really blame me? Most politicians are corrupt, anyway. I have had to deal with at least one corrupt politician in my day, but I honestly don't like to think about it that much. Trust me, I doubt that most of those princes could come close to having seen what I've seen, or having done what I've done."

One of the workers approached our green eyed prince.

"Have you decided what you want to eat, sir?" the man asked.

"Yeah, I think I'll take a Reuben. Nothing to drink for me, though."

While the worker went off to get his food, Edward turned back to the woman. Edward had little practice conversing with people in a casual manner. It was a skill he needed to work on, and he saw no reason not to work on it here.

"So, If you don't mind me asking, what are you doing here? Actually come to think of it, I never even got your name." Edward began, and then realized he was being a bit too forward.

"Um, You want me to buy you something to eat, miss?" Edward began again, once again being too forward. This time without realizing it.

The woman turned her head, scoffing at him. As far as she was concerned, this man was trying too hard to get her to date him.

Edward, on the other hand had no clue what was going on. All he was trying to do was be nice.

"Wow, never seen anyone turn down a free meal before." Edward mumbled to himself confusedly.

All 3 of the accomplishments Edward mentioned are referances to previous quests he has been in. One of them was a quest from precrash althanas, so don't look too hard for it.

[Christoph]

It didn’t take Chris long to locate the source of the young woman’s boredom. To her right sat a man at least several years older than he was. He was wearing fancy clothes, but wasn’t pulling off the big-shot routine that typically went along with such attire. The cape is a nice touch, he thought sardonically. He was some self-absorbed noble trying to impress the ladies. He’d probably never set foot in a real bar before.

I’m surprised that the poor girl isn’t laughing yet, he thought. I know that I want to. Who does this guy think he’s kidding? Deciding that it was his turn to try, the chef chuckled softly and slid onto the stool to the girl’s left.

“You know, I was very tempted to shoot off some cheesy pickup line,” said Chris, getting the woman the quirk and eyebrow. “But I decided just to say ‘good evening’ and buy you a drink instead.” Sometimes, being forward worked – one just had to do it right. This was the chef’s element.

The woman blinked a few times, turning pink in the face. “Well… I, um…”

He grinned and signaled to the bartender, pleased that his shock and awe tactic was beginning to work. “Hmm… you’re too pretty to be an ale drinker, but you’re not fragile enough to be a wine woman.” He made a play at ponderously tapping his chin. “Bartender! Get this beautiful young lady some brandy.” When she giggled, Chris knew that he’d done well. Her amused green eyes fell upon him as the bartender returned with her drink.

“You know, I’ve never actually had brandy before, but all right.”

“That’s the spirit,” he replied. The chef slid the glass closer to her and leaned around for a moment to face his would-be competition. “Better luck next time.”

[Edward Judorne]

sorry for the short post

Edward was not one to give up so easily. Even if he hadn't been trying to pick up on the woman earlier, he had the sudden urge to start trying. Just because some rude and random cook had decided to pick up on the girl he was talking to, didn't mean that he was going to let him steal the show that easily.

"You know, I was talking to this woman, my kind sir. It's sort of rude to interrupt something like this. I know you probably think you are pretty smart what with the way your pick up line and all. Yes, it was a pick up line, just a disguised one. From what I've seen, most people that use pick up lines just want to bed women then ditch them. I would reccomend you back away from her. Even if you were serious about staying with her, It's a dangerous world out there, and I doubt you have the stuff to protect her should something happen. After all, What are you going to do? Outcook your enemies?" Edward asked, a bit annoyed.

[Christoph]

“‘Kind sir’?” Chris asked. He blinked. He blinked several times and stared at the pompous man. Was this man serious? Neither he nor the girl with whom he was flirting spoke for several awkward moments until the silence was finally broken by the chef’s laughter. “You, my friend, need to get out more.” He kept laughing, signaling for another drink from the bartender, who was staring, dumbfounded at the finely dressed customer. Who did this spoiled, rich idiot think he was?

“Listen, Richie, you’re never going to get any female attention if you’re uptight all the time,” Chris continued, shaking his head in amused pity. “You had your shot and from what I could tell, you blew it most spectacularly. Besides, what could you do? Have your rich daddy hire a bunch of thugs to come and beat me up? Grow up. And bartender, you should be careful with this one. He might have his father buy your bar and have it shut down.” With that, the chef turned back to the woman in question.

“I’ve got a corner already claimed,” he said. “I typically use it for brooding and looking dark and mysterious, but I think I can share it with you.” She giggled again, but cast a nervous glance at the would-be prince. The chef offered her a hand, which she took.

“I’ll have to chat more some other time, Richie.”

[Edward Judorne]

Edward had just about had it with the cook's attitude.

"Richie?!? Look, I don't know who you are, but you, my good man are asking for it. I am a man that fends for himself, I don't even know who my fatheris, much less whether he is alive or not. Although it is true that I'm a bit uptight, and I don't get out much, It comes with my true job, and so does secrecy. I am not your stereotypical prince, nor am I your stereotypical fighter. Since stereotypes is all you seem to know though, I'm going to have to speak in the way you expect me to, because you are too dumb to understand me otherwise. You have insulted me, you have insulted my honor, and if you don't mind I'd like to take out my aggression on you. If I had a glove, I'd stereotypically challenge you to a duel. Unfortunately, I don't have a glove, so this will have to suffice." Edward ranted on in anger and frustratration, slapping the cook in the face immediately after he got done speaking.

"I don't plan on using much magic, though. i wouldn't want your stereotypical tavern to lose stereotypical customers." Edward added on as an afterthought.

[Christoph]

Sorry for the wait.

“Oh, so you know magic, too?” replied Chris, rolling his eyes. “You really are trying hard to impress the ladies.” He raised an eyebrow, a bemused expression on his face. This is amazing, he thought to himself. A pompous noble is challenging me to a duel! How could this get any better? When the so-called prince slapped him across the face, his question was answered. This was going to be fun.

“All right then, Richie, calm down,” he said. Glancing around, he noticed that most of the bar was looking over, ready to jump in. That wasn’t surprising. Ranting nobles tended to be mobbed down and tossed out in seconds in his tavern back home. In this instance, though, he wanted to have some fun with it first. “It’s all right, everyone, I’ve got this well under control”

“I accept your challenge,” Chris declared with a dramatic flair and a chuckle. He stretched his back lazily. “Since you issued the challenge, I will choose the terms and the weapon.” He unfastened his sharp steel dueling sword from the outside of his leather bag.

“The weapon, naturally, will be dueling swords,” the chef continued, as though it were an every-day occurrence. “And the terms…” He scratched his chin thoughtfully before climbing atop the largest wooden table in the bar. It was an oak rectangle about ten feet long and four feet wide. It would do nicely. “The terms will be that we fight on the tabletops… to the death, perhaps?” He laughed again. “No, don’t worry, Richie. As much as I sometimes believe that your level of stupidity should constitute a capital offense, I’ll cut you a break this time.”

“Instead, we’ll fight until one of us takes a wound or touches the floor.” He rested the tip of his sword on the table. “What shall the wager be?”

[Edward Judorne]

"Well, I'd like to first just be sure we are both speaking the same language. My main concern is what your definition of a wound is. You see, in my eyes, asmall knick or cut isn't what I'd call a wound. It is a small hinderance, but nothing more. Now, if you got stabbed, or a 2 inch or longer slash anywhere on the body, that to me constitutes as a wound. But, if you disagree, I'd be happy to go by your definition. I just want to make sure we have the same understanding as to what will constitute a wound." Edward said, making sure there were no loopholes.

"Now, about the bet. How about this? I win, and you give me my meal for free and stop stereotyping people. You win, and I'll pay double for my meal, and then I'll get out of your hair. As for the lady, I don't dare put her anywhere in the bet. She deserves to make her own choices." Edward said, setting the terms, and pulling out his rapier.

"So, as soon as we come to an agreement as to what the definition of a wound is, let's get to it."

[Christoph]

Chris quirked an eyebrow, chuckling. “What are you talking about?” he asked. “I don’t work here. What, did you just see the chef coat and assume that I did? Don’t you know that stereotypes are hurtful and wrong?” His grin widened even more. Oh, did he love sarcasm.

“And must you bog us down with technicalities?” the chef asked. “The audience is getting impatient. Everyone knows that a wound is something substantial. Anything less is a scratch.”

“As for the wager itself, your proposal obviously won’t do at all. Since I really don’t need your money, perhaps something more entertaining.” He smirked. “We both return to this bar tomorrow night, but the loser wears a dress of the winner’s choosing and waits on tables.”

[Edward Judorne]

Edward stared at the chef intently. Finally he laughed. one person walked in at this moment, saw everyone looking at the prince, and walked right back out, thinking Edward was out of his damn mind.

"I think that will be acceptable. Just don't dissapoint me. I'll admit, I've never seen a cook fight. Wait, you aare a cook, right? I'm not stereotyping the clothes, am I?" Edward said, lost in hysterical laughter. Without any warning, Edward got serious again. His eyes were focused unblinkingly on his foe. He was not going to give his foe too much of a hance to fight back, if he could help it. He was already piecing a strategy together as he climbed onto the same tabletop.

"You know, I really do hope you are a challenge, and not just another wannabe fighter." Edward stared at the man's stance. He could tell the chef wasn't a wannabe, he had obviously done this before. Edward wasn't really questioning how good the guy was. Instead, he was trying to agitate him a bit before the battle.

"C'mon, show me your stereotypical moves." Edward said, getting into a position to easily counter most basic sword techniques.

[Christoph]

Chris paused and titled his head… again. A ponderous expression formed on his face… again. Stereotypical moves? I’m a cook. What would a stereotypical move be for me?

“Well, I suppose that I could go and find a frying pan and fight you with that,” he joked, his demeanor still laid-back and lighthearted even has his foe grew more serious. “It might actually give you a sporting chance.”

Taking a couple of steps back, making sure that he still had a couple of feet of table left behind him, Chris lazily examined his foe. The man probably had a little bit of formal training; he knew how to stand and how to hold his sword. His stance was very basic and balanced. The chef guessed that he was either too decisive in temperament to commit to a more specialized form or simply hadn’t been trained in anything else. The noble’s attempt at trash-talk was laughable, however.

“You’re not very good at the whole public fighting routine, are you?” Chris sighed, inching his foot under a stray plate that had remained on the table. With a swift motion, he kicked the plate at the noble’s face, following up instantly with a quick, low thrust.

[Edward Judorne]

Edward kept his focus on the sword, even as he swatted the plate out of the air with his rapier. He knew the plate was meant as a distraction. A plate couldn't really do enough damage when kicked at a foe to be too problematic. It was a move meant to test how alert you are. A low thrust came Edward's way, which he quickly avoided by sidestepping it, passing the test with flying colors.

"Actually, a frying pan might give you the advantage. I'm not willing to break my weapon by blocking it. But, that would be one stereotypical chef fighting move, another would be exactly what you did, using kitchenware to distract your foe." Edward confirmed before jumping to a nearby table and kicking a pepper shaker at the chef's face. He had made sure to note the position of everything when he went into this fight, just in case.

"I prefer things that have a long term effect, myself." Edward said as the pepper shaker flew through the air.

[Christoph]

“What are you going to do, make me sneeze?” asked Chris, expertly knocking the incoming peppershaker away with his sword. He hopped from chair to chair on agile feet, landing lightly on the opposite end of the table occupied by his opponent.

The other patrons in the bar scattered from epicenter of the duel. They’d lined up around the walls like a crowd at a circus, with their plates and ale mugs in hand. A small handful of enterprising individuals darted back and forth, taking wagers on who the victor of this random duel would be.

The chef wasted no time as he landed. He launched a lightning-fast offensive against his opponent. The tip of his blade streaked through the air in a blur that was impossible for even Christopher’s eyes to follow. All the while, his legs were bent at the knees, ready and waiting to spring into action at a moment’s notice.

[Edward Judorne]

"Well, you have to admit that if you were sneezing, you wouldn't be able to fight too well." Edward replied as he watched the chef close in for an attack. The chef's eyes seemed to be more focused than ever, Whatever the next attack the chef made was, it was going to be fierce. Edward was sure on that point. But there was something to be said about how Edward's brain worked.

Edward factored in everything in mere seconds. The opponent was soon to land on the table he was on and attack in a way he had yet to figure out, but likely it would be with his sword. Swords wer meant for close ranged attacks, but even they were nearly useless when chest to chest with your opponent. Normally the foe could back up, but this was not your ordinary battle. If he was able to get his foe backed against the side of the table, he might be able to get the advantage he needed.

Edward waited until the last second before he made his move and charged towards his foe, stopping just short of the edge of the table, as he attempted to push his foe off. It would be quite easy to sidestep Edward's charge, and Edward knew this even as the handle of the foe's sword hit him with enough force to knock him a bit off balance, but he was hoping his foe would be surprised enough at his actions that he'd be able to knock the chef off the table for the win. If that didn't happen, however, Edward was ready to use the opening he created in order to jump back to the table the fight started on, where he'd try to slash at the chef if and when he followed.

[Christoph]

The prince’s maneuver was neither shocking nor unorthodox, especially for someone with a solid background in tavern brawls. Such enclosed spaces often dictated grappling and aggressive charges instead of skilled swordplay. That is, they dictated such things unless one was skilled and quick-witted enough to rely on finesse. The chef had always been the swift, clever type in the bar fights that all the big men underestimated and all the veterans watched out for.

Using the thudding of his opponent’s feet instead of his vision to guide his timing, Chris retracted his sword and crouched. With almost feline grace, he sprung forward with his knees and drove his shoulder into the charging noble’s legs. There was an audible crack, either from the noble’s knees or the chef’s shoulder, as Christopher plowed under his foe’s body. He decided that it was time to raise bid and call the prince’s bluff.

In the same motion, the cook spun around and centered his balance, driving his sword back at his opponent. His movements were precise and fluid, his form perfect. Were he in richer garb, Chris could have seemed at home in any kingly court, dueling for the honor and favor of fellow nobles in front of the rich and powerful. Instead, he was just a chef that left the spectator’s wondering just where he’d learned to fight.

[Edward Judorne]

There is a big difference between seeing an attack coming and being able to dodge it, and though Edward knew this, he was about to experience it firsthand. As soon as he saw his foe put the sword away, he was pretty sure he knew what was coming. A simple bum rush came to him as no surprise, but given what little reaction time he had, there wasn't much time to get out of the way. He was going to get hit, that was a fact. What he had to think about was hitting his foe before this happened, as that was his only chance. It was not his cup of tea to hope that a blind stab would connect, but he had little to no choice in the matter at this point.

Edward pulled his rapier over his head and thrust downwards as the chef charged at him. It was almost guaranteed he'd hit something, the question was whether or not his hit resulted in a true injury or not. Having said this, there was that slight chance the attack could miss altogether, so he was unsure whether he connected or not, but one thing was certain. If he connected, he had only managed a draw, as the chef's attack took his knees out from under him. The only question on Edward's mind, as he sat there, was did the the blind stab he had made hit anything vital?

I know chris had one more attack after that, but let's face it, Edward just got injured do to the charge, and therefore either lost or managed a draw. So, I'm assuming Chris will stay his hand since this battle is over.

[Christoph]

His opponent’s move was one of amateur desperation. The ‘prince’ knew that he’d been beaten and was trying to force out a draw at the last moment. It was modestly clever move that might have worked against a less experienced fencer. Chris, though, wielded his blade like an extension of his arm, as though they shared nerves and blood vessels. The chef could almost feel the blood of his foe warm the tip of his sword.

He knew that he’d scored his wound the instant it happened. This allowed him to react with speed that came from years of training. He lifted his forearms up to block the prince’s counterattack at the elbows as he finished his pass. What would have been a solid blow to the torso merely scratched over his shoulder, cutting a gash into his chef coat.

Chris secured his footing at the opposite end of the table from where he’d started, spinning to a stop with a showman’s flourish. He looked at his bloodied weapon, then at his opponent, and finally at his shoulder. The crowd began to clap. The chef grinned.

“Thank you, thank you, you’ve been a great audience. I’d buy everyone a round of drinks, but I’m a cheap bastard.” The dueling cook turned to the prince once again and smirked, once again glancing between the man and his scratched shoulder. He chuckled. “Well, it seems that we’re both going to need some new attire…”

[Breaker]

The glove slap of honor
Battle Judgement

You requested minor detail, so I'll try to keep this brief. First of all, for future reference, both of you should put a link to your most recent profile in either your user sidebar or your signature. It's annoying to have to go looking for them.

Christoph's scores are in red, Ed's are in blue. Which, incidentally, are the color of dresses I think you two should wear.

STORY

Continuity ~ 5 ~ 4
Chris- You had a decent premise for being in the pub, but it was pretty... sterotypical ;) ... I think it would have been a little better if you had started Chris off carousing, rather than sitting in the corner and suddenly deciding he'd like to go flirt with somebody.
Ed- You were on your way to the Citadel. Why? And why hadn't Edward had anything to eat in 12 hours? You really didn't give me much here.

Setting ~ 4 ~ 3
Chris did an okay job describing the setting at first, after that first post you both sort of ignored it until the fight started. It was neat that you fought on the tables, and kicked stuff at each other, but... come on. The bartender, the brunette, and everyone else in the bar was just fine with you two trashing the place? That was ridiculous. With a little more attention to detail, it might have made sense (if it had been a grungy place, and there was nothing nice to break)... but, the bartender didn't even say anything. Really guys. Think about it.

Pacing ~ 5 ~ 3
Chris at least made an attempt at building some tension, and his posts kept me entertained. Ed some of your posts were pure dialogue, or nearly as much, and probably less than a hundred words. There really is no excuse for that.

CHARACTER

Dialogue ~ 6 ~ 4
Chris- Your dialogue was entertaining and in character, but you couldhave done a lot more with it, and just because your opponent keeps talking in the heat of combat, doesn't mean you should. Chris is an experienced fighter; would he really waste his time with words?
Ed- Your dialogue was boring, repetitive, and highly unrealistic. No one talks like that. I read your profile, and all it says is that Edward is an emotionless guy. Well, that's not much of a character, but you didn't even play it. Edward always seemed to be screaming at Chris and getting all angry. An emotionless, calculative person should refuse to be ruffled and maybe get the better of a few verbabl exchanges.

Action ~ 5 ~ 3
Even when the fight started, there wasn't a whole lot of action going on. Both of you had an instance of bunnying, and if you're going to do that, you need to make an OOC note that it is approved, or else it's against the rules. You guys both made it seem easy to jump from table to table, which it shouldn't be. You both kicked stuff at each other, but then ignored the fact that there should be tankards, plates, and cutlery everywhere. This is a little more believable for Chris, being a higher level character. Ed, if you're going to fight characters that are much stronger than yours, don't expect it to be an even fight. I didn't find Edward's actions realistic at all, and except for in the fight scene, he was just a talking head.

Persona ~ 5 ~ 3
Chris was consistent enough as a character, but there just wasn't a whole lot going on in his head. Edward was, as I said before, almost nothing but a talking head. You didn't play him true to your profile, but even just basing the persona on this thread, I couldn't really divulge what kind of person he was, or why he was... well, rather stupid. The whole "defending my honor" thing seemed really unrealistic and forced.

WRITING STYLE

Technique ~ 4 ~ 1
My first response to this is "What technique?" Chris, you used a very few literary devices, and had a neat tie-up at the end, but you could have done so much more with both. Ed... I could have easily justified giving you a 0 in this category, but you got a 1 because I don't want to give out 0s. You really need to reconsider your writing style. If you're going to make tiny posts, they better be damn good, and not just a paragraph of boring dialogue. Use literary devices, use foreshadowing... use something.

Mechanics ~ 6 ~ 4
You both did okay here, but there were still at least a couple typos or other errors in every post. And when your posts are this short, one or two little things affects your score accordingly.

Clarity ~ 7 ~ 4
Chris kept me interested and I rarely had to re-read his posts to figure out what was going on. Ed, those tiny posts just didn't cut it for me. They left me wondering what Ed was doing, what was going on in the scene, and why you didn't write more.

MISCELLANEOUS

Wild Card ~ 4 ~ 2
I don't feel like either of you really cared about the quality of this thread, and that is reflected in these scores.

TOTAL ~ 51 ~ 31

Christoph is the Winner!

EXP and GP Rewards

Christoph gains 1600 EXP and 500 GP
Edward Judorne gains 300 EXP and 100 GP

You guys would have had more GP, but the bartender came from the back room where he was "distracted" and made you pay for the damages and lost patrons.

Other Rewards

Christoph receives a second-hand linen red dress and a book entitled "Good Pick-Up Lines" from the Silver Boar lost and found. The dress is a little tight across the chest and a few pages of the book are questionably stuck together.

Edward Judorne receives a second-hand linen blue dress. It fits well, but the skirt is scandalously short, showing off his legs. He also receives a leather ball gag from the lost and found.

[Zook Murnig]

EXP/GP added!