Shadows Intertwine, a Thief's First Real Fight (Closed to Blue_Angel_eyes)

[Makira]

Makira stepped into the Citadel for the first time in her life. She was not prepared for the sight as she walked up to it, a building meant for showdowns between fighters of all Calibur. It was even rumored that one of the most powerful fighters of all time, Xanith Trailweaver, once graced these halls, so many, many years ago. Makira had originally been planning to evade the hallowed halls of the ancient arena, but had second thoughts when a street thug almost had her for breakfast.

She smiled slightly when she saw the hallways leading to different areas of the building. She walked down the hallways, searching for a doorway with a particular mark upon it. She eventually found the door. It had an upside-down triangle placed within an even larger triangle, wrapped in a circle with a vine motif wrapping around it. It was exquisite, and she knew this would be the arena in which she would fight. She walked in.

What she saw she was not ready for. Within there seemed to be a house, a full out house. This was a surprise, even for Makira. The house was old, but handsomely so, and weel kept. It appeared as though some rich person lived there, fresh for the thieving, though Makira knew this was not the case. She walked into the foyer of the house, noting the exquisite furniture that would catch quite the bundle in any black market, if one could remove the owner's name from them.

She sat in a comfy armchair, awaiting her opponent, who she knew could not take too much longer to arrive. She was looking forward to being able to use her whip for something more than an acrobatics rope, for a change. She wanted a challenge to her physical and magical abilities, and she knew she was bound to get one in this old house (bad pun definitely intended).

[Blue_Angel_eyes]

Faith knelt down beside Maya before entering the room. She buried her face in the silver wolf's fur, breathing in her scent. Faith's heart was racing underneath her heavy cloak. Her bow was strapped to her back, as was her quiver. Her sword was sharpened... She was ready... but she stilll didn't want to go.

Come on, Faith. We can defeat anyone... we're us! Maya's casual mannor made Faith smile, as they always did. She hugged the wolf tightly and then stood. She picked up her hat and twirled her long braid in a circle, putting the hat securely over it. She pulled the brim down, covering her feminine eyes. She was posing as a man.

She opened the door and walked in, cape wooshing out behind her as she walked. The wolf stalked beside her, gray eyes menacing as she snarled. Faith surveyed the room from her downcast eyes. Her left hand rested on the hilt of her sword.

She took in the surroundings. A mansion? It was human make, the architecture screamed it. She looked around for an advantage point. The arena was a surprise, although she didn't let it get to her. She was simply here for the fight, nothing more. She took in the surroundings as she gracefully walked into the foyer, gliding a more appropriate term than walking. She deepened her voice and looked at the avian on the coach.

"Are you my opponent?" The term was short, to the point. She prided herself on getting to the point quickly. Short and sharp, like an arrow. And her arrows almost always hit home.

[Makira]

Makira looked up as she heard the door open and stood, her wings extending slightly as she did so. She smiled as her opponent addressed her as such, and she began to chuckle in amusement. "The grace of the elves may be unmatched, but I doubt you are as you look. However, I will not be the one to overlook the chance that you are as you seem." Makira then looked around the house. "Humans have the wierdest taste in items, but you elves always have the best looking stuff in the world, because it fits in so well with nature. I suppose we are not here to talk about such trivial things though. I see you have a friend. I do as well." A portal of black flames erupted from three feet to Makira's right, and her familiar, a Dark Phoenix, came forth from within the flames.

Makira smiled softly as the bird perched on the back of the chair she had been sitting in. "This is my friend, Lira, a Shadow Phoenix. She has been my closest friend for as long as I can remember, and she will be helping me in this, as your wolf will be doing for you, I presume."

Makira laughed, her laughter ringing like bells in the middle of the room. She then grabbed her whip from her belt and unfurled it, giving it its fullest time. "I don't rely on blades... Whips are more to my liking. They sting, but don't usually make lasting impressions on people, if you catch my drift. They also have a usefulness beyond their mere ability to sting, as I will probably show you at a later date... Until then, on your guard!" Makira finished the sentence by spinning her whip in a circle and making an attack for her opponent's left leg.

[Blue_Angel_eyes]

Maya, be my eyes. Alright girl? I can't watch that overgrown pigeon and take care of the whip-girl. Watch my back.

But Faith...

But the wood elf was already gone, jumping nimbly to the right so the whip hit empty air. Her grace came in handy every once and awhile. She loosened her sword as she moved, diving forward twoard Makira in a dash of deadly speed.

In a blur of mercury, Maya slid sideways, flanking Faith as the wood elf charged the enemy. She was slower than usual, the cape and hat weighing her down. Still, better safe than sorry.

Her sword glittered in the reflected pheonix fire as she dove at Makira's right side but faked out at the last second, going for her left leg with the deadly-edged short sword. The wolf reversed the maneuver, going left but faking right.

Everything laid itself out smoothly in Faith's mind. She was using a whip. Whip's had range. Therefore, stay close. She wouldn't give Makira a chance to show her some new technique. Simple tactics would win this fight. If it had to be far, Maya could keep her at bay while Faith shot her down with a rain of arrows. After all, her arrows always hit home...

Keep it close! She said to Maya silently. The wolf nodded her understanding and sprung, lunging twoard Makira as Faith swung her sword left in her feign.

[Makira]

Makira smirked at the obvious maneuver, and Lira lunged at the wolf with flying speed. Makira was then able to concentrate on merely dodging the wolf and avoiding the blow from Faith. It was a relatively simple matter for one who had lived as a thief her entire life. She lived avoiding people... Short range may not have been her favorite way to fight, but she didn't have a choice in the matter.

"So... You noticed the one weakness my whips have... I'll have to go for a slightly different option than I had originally intended." Makira pulled a steel dagger from the sheath on her belt, forgetting for a moment that she had the other one tucked away inside her boot. She had more than one fighting option left to her, though she did not like to fight in close quarters, she would do it if she was forced to. Her whips wouldn't work too well in this house anyway. Makira then realized that this was a house, and that anything within it could be used as a weapon.

She grabbed out for an old side-table and threw it at her opponent, not worrying to much about what damage it would cause. The Citadel was created for battle, and anything goes in love and war. This was war, and Makira would use anything she could in order to win. Behind the thrown table, Makira ran, lashing with he dagger in case her opponent did dodge the table.

[Blue_Angel_eyes]

Deal with the flaming pigeon.

Got it.

The exchange was brief and fast, the thoughts flashing from one mind to the other. Faith's reflexes allowed her time to think. She watched as Makira threw the table at her. The obvious option would be to go around it.

And more often than not, the obvious option would get you killed. Can't go around. Can't go over.... why not go up?

She hunched back like a wolf and sprang, flying into the air as her cape trailed out behind her. Her hat threatened to blow from her head so she used her free hand to pull it down, covering her eyes. Her foot touched the top of the table as it hit empty air uselessly. She pushed off, springing farther up into the air and coming down behind Makira. She whirled around, sword at the ready.

"Tricky. I like the way you think. Too bad it wasn't enough." Her voice was low and deadly as she sprang forward like a cat, blade in hand.

Her wolf was in fast action as well. She leaped off furniture, throwing herself at the pheonix in a full body tackle. The secret was to get the animal to teh ground, where Maya had the advantage. She wasn't afraid of the fire. A creature of earth and water, she would duel this fire beast 'til the end of time.

[Makira]

Lira was more than ready for the wolf's attack. She was a being of both Fire and Air, with some Shadow thrown in for good measure. I am not so weak as you seem to think, wolf creature... I have more power than just fire, though I have yet to learn to use them appropriately. Makira, look out! Lira dodged the attack swiftly and flew to the rafters, hoping to catch the dog's attention.

Makira, however, knew her opponent was an elf, and able to pull of acrobatice stunt the likes of which she had rarely seen, even in her days as a thief. Makira looked to her opponent, turning around, and said, "Useful powers you elves seem to have. I do not envy you, however, as I have battled your kind more than once before, and this will teach you a lesson..."

Makira jumped backwards a few feet and did a simple flip to land near another table, but this time she would not be doing as she was expected to. She cracked her whip once in the direction of the chair she had been sitting in, got her whip wrapped around it, and pulled it, flinging it in the direction of her opponent, all the while chragin Dark energies into her body, preparing for her most commonly used magical ability, the Shadow Matrix.

Makira looked at her opponent, waiting for her to dodge the thrown object, and ran behind it, her dagger prepared to strike again if she dodged to either side, but over the thrown chair, she cast her Shadow Matrix, a ball made of two interlocking rings, like a gyroscope, spinning as it was thrown, covered in what appeared to be black fire. It charged as she prepared to slash her opponent with the dagger if she dodged in any other direction.

[Blue_Angel_eyes]

I shall tear your throat out you orange turkey! Maya snarled vicously, ripping at the air with her teeth. She looked at Faith and Makira, turning her back on the now hopeless target of the pheonix. She couldn't reach the rafters. She inhaled deeply, documenting the pheonix's scent so she could determine if it was coming closer. She then bounded twoard her mistress in long loping strides.

Shit. Faith thought to herself. Caught between a rock and a hard place. She looked up and saw Maya coming at her... right into the chair, and awaiting... big... black... ball... thing.

Get the bird, I'll deal with the chair. I can 't reach her. Maya t hought ot her.

But the shadow magic?

Trust me Faith. The wolf responded.

Faith spun, pulling her bow over her shoulder and an arrow from her quiver. She had three arrows launched before she could blink, both aimed at the flaming bird. She didn't realise that in the effort she had knocked off her hat, revealing pointed ears and her long black curls that framed her face, as well as the emerald stone set in the middle of her forehead.

She spun back to Maya and called her back, suddenly coming up with an idea.

Maya... to me!

The wolf turned and bounded twoards her, jumping up to Faith. Faith took her paws and they thought in unison as Faith screamed it outloud.

"Twin souls unite. One heart, one mind. One body."

They were enveloped in a white light, forming around them like an egg while it burst with white light. The light quickly dimmed however and what exited teh shining egg was not what entered. Faith was taller and her hair was longer. Her eyes were different, her nose longer and when she smiled her teeth were sharper. The extra height was from her longer legs.

She backpedaled, bow still in hand, and then dived to the left when she was no longer in range of Makira' knives. Her speed was upped in this form, but it was still barely enough to pull this off. The chair caught her in the ankle and sent her sprawling. She banged her arm hard and swore, but managed to be missed by the matrix. She struggled to her feet, sniffing deeply with her heightened nose.

She unclipped her cloak and flung it away, slipping her bow back over her shoulder and unsheathing her sword. She had a different stance, a more animal-like one, and she was holding her sword differently.

"Let's dance." She growled, her voice more feminine but at the same time gruffer and more of a snarl.

[Makira]

Makira smiled as her opponent combined together with her animal to make something more poten and more powerful than what had originally been there. Her voice was ful of glee as she spoke, "I look forward to seeing how well you do in this form, against two opponents." Makira's smile turned into a mocking sneer as she continued on her way in the path that Maera had set her into many years ago when they first met. She was remembering the training she had gone through with Maera, her sneering face always there, enraging Makira to be all she could be, and more.

Makira shook with excitement as the adrenaline in her blood pulsed more and more quickly. Lira, from behind, use your Black Firestorm. In this form, the Shadow Magic should hurt somewhat more than it normally would. Makira said to the bird in her mind.

Lira was quick to oblige and flew behind the opponent, her wings glowing with a dark fire. When she flapped, the fire fell down in the direction of the newly formed beast that had appeared from the glowing egg. "When you fight as one, you lose your two-person advantage." Makira said, her voice showing more than a little amusement at what she said. "Allow me to show you what I can really do!" She charged her magic within herself once again, letting it pour through her heart and soul. She knew the extent of her power was limited, and the amount of times she would be able to use this next tactic would be somewhat limited, but she also knew that it would take more than a little power to be able to defeat her tactic easily.

Shadowed Illusion! her mind screamed as her body seemed to become made of Shadow, and split into three separate selves. As she spoke, so did her illusions, to make sure that her opponent would be unable to tell which was the real her. "I am Makira Sheara, Mistress of Shadow Illusion Magic." Her magic even duplicated the special scent she gave off, so that the keen senses of the wolf would be unable to penetrate her true form.

"Now for another small opportunity. Whip of Mystery!" Her whip was imbued with the Shadow pent up inside of herself, and she saw it grow stronger, more flexible, and more than a match for some overgrown elf-dog. "Take this!" She launched the whip, with the intention of making some rather large bruises on her opponent's body, and then she swung again, careless of whether or not the first one hit, hoping to wrap the whip around a limb, and bring her opponent down to ground-level, hard.

[Blue_Angel_eyes]

Her wolf sense screamed that there were three of Makira, but Faith's mind knew better. There weren't three of the girl, there was one and two illusions. And illusions couldn't hurt you, they were like shadows on the ground. But... that didn't help. She didn't know which we illusions.

She inhaled deeply, turning her nose to the air. She smelt the mix of ash and fire that she identified as the pheonix. She knew what she would do.

"Fool of a girl, never underestimate your opponent. You call yourself a mistress of shadow. I am a creature of the earth. Shadows are a part of me." She grinned darkly, lupine eyes glinting. She leapt into the air, high and fast from her powerful wolf-like legs, her nose telling her exactly where the pheonix would be. Her paw-like hands hit its back as she vaulted over the top of the flaming bird, hands barely making contact long enough to feel the heat.

SHe landed on the ground, pulled out her bow and fired three arrows simultaneously, each one aiming for one of the Makira's. SHe followed another set of three right after, and slipped backwards, into the shadow of the wall to watch and see if the arrows would pass through the visage's of the girl, leaving her with the true Makira.

She realised the way the fight was going. But it didn't matter. Let her go on the defensive. Soon Makira would tire and Faith would tear her apart. Besides, she hasn't used her biggest card yet, one that would turn the tide when and if it came time.

((I apologize for a shitty-ass-post. Kitty = tiiiiiiiiired))

[Makira]

Arrows, arrows, and more arrows… It seemed that her opponent had an endless supply of the things. Makira watched in horror as Lira fell to the ground, only getting up after lying there a moment. Makira’s visages growled, watching in building rage as her opponent fired two volleys of arrows at them. This time, it was Makira feeling fearful for her life, and somewhat confused as well. As much as she wanted to avoid the projectiles, she couldn’t move. She could only remember in vivid detail the day that her brother died, taking on one of her tasks. It should have been her that died.

Her brother had always talked about how lucky she was to get the dangerous assignments when they worked for the Silent Hand, being raised by Maera. Makira was the better of the two by far, and her brother, Terrus, envied her. He always gave her stupid advice, using “If I were you, I’d…” and it got on her nerves. Eventually, when he had said it one time too many, she growled angrily and said, “Fine, if you want to prove to yourself you can be a better me than I am, then go ahead.”

He reluctantly agreed to do it, though he said his goodbye to her in a way she wouldn’t forget for as long as she lived. “I’ll do my best, sis… That’s all any of us really can do. Hindsight gets us nowhere, even if I do use it a lot.” He was gone the next second, the handgun he had stolen earlier that year gone with him. He had mugged the wrong man, and his soldiers had killed Terrus with over fifty arrows. It was a slow, agonizing death, and Makira could only remember his screams of pain and the contortion of his face as his life slowly slipped from his body.

The night, clear and bright, completely contrasted her mood. Darkness and a solitary lifestyle filled her days and night for weeks on end. Makira refused to eat, to sleep, and sometimes even to do the missions that Maera, the one who treated both her and Terrus as her children, gave to her.

She would just give it off to someone else, someone more deserving of Maera’s trust. Eventually, she pulled herself from her stupor, but would never again look at arrows the same way as before. The time eventually came when Makira could stand up to someone with a bow, provided she was sure she would be able to dodge and defeat anything her opponent threw at her. But now, Makira’s fear resurfaced, as strong as ever, and struck her hard, just when she needed to dodge.

Makira pulled hard at her body, forcing herself to move, but still getting hit with both of the arrows, one on her thigh and the other on her upper arm. The Illusions dissipated as she lost her concentration, but she couldn’t care less. Her opponent had skills, but was it enough to possess them and use them when your opponent was obviously scared stiff of such tactics? That question pulsed through Makira’s minds as she gripped the handle of her whip, attempting to get a hold on the emotions running through her body.

Her mind made up, Makira stood and called Lira to her. “Opponent. You are working quite well against me, but I have one thing to say to you. I cannot, I will not lose today! I still have to search for the Nightmare Thief, and until I find her, I will never give in to anyone, even when I am mere inches from death, so do as you will. I will defeat you, regardless.” With that, Makira’s mind came into sharp focus, her body contractin as she built up a tremendous amount of Darkness energy within herself.

“Shadow Matrices!” Makira yelled, pulling from within herself the most powerful Darkness energy she had ever handled. Her body burned with the pure energy she was pulling from herself. Her Shadow Matrix never caused her this sort of pain by itself, but this time it would be accompanied by something more than itself. Makira threw three different Shadow Matrices, her Darkness overflowing her body as she also lunged forward, her whip ready to grab her opponent should she dodge more than one of the Shadow Matrices. Makira, a dog tamer. That was the only thought Makira had as the desperate attack continued. She flicked her wrist, throwing the whip to wrap around her opponent should she try to make an escape or not. If not, Makira would compensate by bringing the whip around to grab Faith anyway. Such was the way of the mind of one who had just recently conquered their fears.

[Blue_Angel_eyes]

Faith shot two more arrows before she noticed the dark magic balls coming at her. She jumped aside, howling as she did. Her lupine legs easily carried her away from the first magic ball... right into the second.

She felt the darkness collide with her furry body. All of her nightmares of darkness overtaking her violently filled her mind. She screamed, a sound that was barely even half human. Her face contorted with agony as she was flung against the wall by the power of the shadow matrix. Maya howled as the two were flung apart, both hitting the floor with a hard thud.

Faith slumped on the ground and then shakily rose to her feet. She looked up at Makira, anger filling her feminine features. She raised her sword slowly, moving it to the guard position. There was no laughter or mirth in her eyes, they seemed almost vacant.

"You..." She began slowly. "Wont.... win."

Then she was a blur of motion, sprinting forward with her sword in hand, gray eyes glistening with a cold unmerciless gleam. Her skin had flushed, leaving the scar on her face a prominent pink line as the gem twinkled in the light. She felt adrenaline course through her. Her sense were completely on edge.

She wasn't going to lose this fight. Not now.

Maya was up behind her, shaking her head to try and clear the remnants of the shot. Hitting the wall had hurt more than the energy ball, to be honest, but it had still clouded her mind. She saw Faith's bow lying on the ground from when they had been struck and lunged for it, grabbing it up in her teeth. She gave a muffled howl to Faith, who turned her head to look to the wolf.

The good thing about being hit by the ball was it had put some distance between Faith and her opponent. She had time to think. Maya turned her head to the side and whipped the bow twoards Faith, who caught it nimbly in her off hand. She sheathed her sword and pulled an arrow out of her quiver. She was running short on arrows, she'd have to collect some of her discarded ones soon.

Making sure she was out of range of Makira's whip, Faith shot three arrows at Makira and three at her pheonix. She was sore from Makira's attack and she cringed as she loosed the final shot.

Maya was poised ready on the ground. She was waiting for the bird or the avian to make a move. She barred her teeth in a silent snarl, challenging them.

Faith's hand clenched around her bow.

Five arrows left....

[Makira]

Makira watched silently, pulling the pair of arrows launched at her from her arm and leg. She had barely managed to launch an attack to give her time to pull them out. She heard Faith's words with nothing more than the most cursory of her senses. She had no care for this fight, it was the adrenaline it was giving her that mattered. It was a rush, much like the ones she gained whenever she was thieving. Of course, Lira saw it a bit differently, her black plumage gleaming slightly in the artificial light of the house. Neither of them had ever faced a pair of opponents as gifted as the ones they now faced. Makira was certain that even her teacher, Maera, would have trouble with this bothersome child of Elven Kind.

Makira dodged the arrows easily this time, her fear no longer controlling her, but being controlled. “Lira… We have to think of something to get the two of them to submit, or we will be defeated ourselves.” Lira agreed wholeheartedly and grabbed two of the three arrows shot at her from the air, letting the third glide easily under her. This time, it was no longer business as usual. This time, it was personal. No longer was this a fight between two people who had entered the Citadel. It was now a fight between two bitter rivals who had an affinity for fighting one another. Makira smiled coldly, her heart shown clearly on her face. In her heart, her emotions had frozen over, and her eyes now shone emotionless.

Together, Makira and Lira were ready to finish this fight, and they would not be willing to give in until the fight itself was ended. “Lira? Now!” Makira yelled, and Lira dived toward the wolf creature, throwing the arrows to force it to dodge, and Makira came behind Lira, her daggers both in her hands, whip back in her belt, ready to cut the dog to shreds. Talons and daggers, together, were making an attack.

However, at the last second, Makira switched her sights to Faith, lunging directly at her, her eyes cold and piercing. “This is the end! Lira and I will win this fight, and you will be defeated. We have no liking for death, so we will not kill you, but I will leave something in here for the monks to clean up!” With that Makira let out a chilling laugh and continued to Faith, her daggers plunging in for a debilitating blow to either of Faith’s arms, to make her ability to use arrows become nothing.

This was revenge, sweet revenge against every archer who fired an arrow at her brother those many years ago, when Maera had raised them into gifted thieves. To reduce an archer to being unable to use arrows in a fight was to remove the very soul of their ability to fight, and Makira was fighting to do just that. No more arrows, only blade to blade, and that would make this fight more to Makira’s advantage. As a thief, she had learned close quarters combat with knives before she had ever even held a whip in her hands, and she was more than proficient enough to take this little wench out by herself.

Lira continued toward the wolf, in order to use her razor talons to cut the wolf into submission. This coordinated attack pattern was designed to keep the two, the wolf and the elf, from being able to gang up on Makira or Lira as one, and this time, they were going to succeed, one way or another.

[Blue_Angel_eyes]

Can you handle the bird?

There was no response to Faith's telepathic question. Only the savage snarl from Maya as the wolf's blood lust rose. Faith felt the hair on the back of her neck rise at the sound. Even as a child she had learned to fear the wolves at the height of the blood madness that overtook them as they faught. Still, Maya knew what she was doing.

The wolf's lips were pulled off her mouth to reveal the long vicously sharp canines. She continued to snarl, the once intelligent gleam in her eye was gone, replaced by the beast's mad fury. She wasn't Ariana Skysong's companion anymore, Maya was a she-wolf protecting her pack-mate. She felt the fire in her mind and the ice in her veins. She watched the fire bird come with an icey clarity, snarling and growling. The arrows came flying at her. She jumped in the air, snapping one out of it with her jaws. The other punctured her shoulder but she barely felt it. Hot blood began flowing down her leg and it only increased her anger.

Let them come. I will meet them with my fangs. The thought was foreign in Faith's mind, rougher and harder to understand than Maya's usual thoughts. It made goosebumps rise on her skin.

The wolf knew one thing with crystal clarity. The bird was hers. And it was coming for her. In order to reach her, it would have to come within the range of her snapping teeth and barred claws. She was strong and sleek. Let the thing's pretty wings flap beneath her as she tackled it to the ground. The fire-bird's agility would mean little as Maya pinned her down.

The she-wolf could all but feel the fire as the other animal sped towards her. She could smell the brimstone, see the fire. All of her sense screamed as she snarled violently. She could almost taste the scorching blood in her mouth. The bird was almost on top of her.

Maya lunged.

Faith watched Makira with calm detachment. She shot two more arrows from nearly point-blank range as Makira ran towards her. The elf maiden dropped her bow to the ground, jumping nimbly backwards and shedding her quiver onto the ground as she did so. She drew her sword and watched her foe.

She was going to win. There was no alternative in her mind. Emotions weren't a part of it anymore. She was beyond that. The ache from hitting the wall was a small echo in the back of her mind, the scorch from the energy ball was barely a whisper in her nerves. All she could think of was her opponent. She was nothing like the wolf she fought beside. While her friend lost herself in her blood-rage, Faith ascended to a higher level, one where pain and thinking barely measure into what she did at all. Surety was everything. Intuition was everything. Her instincts knew when she jump and dodge and swing. The instincts that she had gained from spending so much time in such close quarters with a she-wolf were what would keep her alive now.

She shifted her weight slowly, waiting for Makira to hit her. She felt the adrenaline rushing. It was real now. No more playing, no mare games. Fighter on fighter, struggling to see who was stronged, who was faster, who was better. It was as wolves fought to choose leaders.

Makira was still coming and Faith knew it was time. She sprinted forward, sliding sideways on a downwards cut with her wolf-headed blade.

Wolf and Elf felt their bond blaze for one instant with a brilliant piece of shared knowledge. They didn't hope they were going to win. They didn't wish they were going to win. They didn't think they were going to win....

They knew it.

[Makira]

Lira gave out a disharmonic squawk as she was lunged at my Maya, being taken down by the giant wolf. She was pinned by her wings, though still able to use her talons to good effect. She slashed with her talons at the beast above her, hoping to drive off any attempts to bite her or claw her. If she could hold out long enough for Makira to take care of the elf, then they would be able to win the day. Lira was not going to let Makira be taken in a two-on-one. Not if she could help it. Lira then had a crazy idea, one she knew if she tried she might end up regretting it, but she did it anyway.

With the wolf having lunged onto her, she used her Black Firestorm, not caring whether the dog felt it or not, burned through the hardwood floor, and fell through the hole. Though injured, Lira was still able to maintain flight, but this time under the house. Makira, I will handle this beast. Just concentrate on the elf.

Makira saw the arrows coming before they were even fired, and though her fear still burned white-hot within her, she still knocked them aside with her daggers. She would not be losing this fight because of wooden sticks with pointy metal attached. “She who can keep her head in combat, while also working to disorient the enemy, will be victorious.” Makira said as she avoided the sword blow from the elf. Or so she thought. Her adrenaline wouldn’t let her feel any pain, but she had been gashed along the left arm.

Makira, able to ignore wounds now, continued her assault against the elf. “I will not lose!” Makira shouted as she threw her entire soul into her attacks. She back-slashed, slashed high, slashed low, slashed everywhere her opponent could possibly think of dodging to. Makira had no intention of letting up, not matter how fast this elf was. Makira would defeat her, and then she could work with Lira to take out that fur coat with teeth that the elf so kindly called a wolf.

To end her attack, Makira back flipped and struck out with her whip, to catch her opponent in a stranglehold, and thus effectively ending the fight for the elf. After this, according to whether or not it would work, she would continue her fight with the elf, or take out the pile of fur with the teeth.

Lira, however, would try and land the wolf in the Darkness under the floor, thus landing him in her turf, making it a more evenly matched fight. This fight was going to be finished. Lira, her heart pulsing like never before, thought, This fight will end soon. None of us were ready for such fighters to be going up against… One of us will run out of energy, and then it will all be over. Lira just hoped the one to fall wouldn’t be her.

[Blue_Angel_eyes]

Maya yelped as the floor gave out underneath her and she went tumbling into the cold abyss below the house. Still she felt the bird beneath her, the creature’s heat scorching her fur. One of the thing’s talons slashed at her face, leaves a winding cut through the center of her head. She howled in a mixture of rage and pain, snapping viciously at Lira’s exposed throat.

Phoenix and wolf flailed and thrashed against one another, spinning and whirling in the darkness. Maya was intent to keep her position on top of her foe, stopping the thing from flying away. She was a wolf, a stalker of the shadows. She was not afraid of some musty basement. Let the bird try all of her desperate tricks, the she-wolf would not give in. With a flash of ferocity, Maya made another violent lunge for the bird’s neck, hoping to close her powerful jaws around the sort feathers and taste the steaming blood.

“MAYA!” Faith cried out as the ground gave out. She all felt a white hot bolt of pain across her face as the phoenix managed to land the blow on her friend’s face. The jewel on her forehead glimmered as her head flew to look at the spot where dog and bird disappeared from view. She turned back to Makira and her eyes narrowed in hatred. She let the bloodlust of the wolves enter her veins for the first time in my life.

“I will finish you and your overgrown fire-pigeon. You hurt Maya.” She snarled as Makira began her furious attack. Faith opened her heart to the wolf-part of her soul, the part that was connected to Maya. Nothing changed about her physically, only her way of thinking. She threw her caution to the wind, not caring about herself. This girl in front of her had hurt her friend. She would pay.

She saw Makira begin to slash wildly, ignoring where her opponent actually stood. Out of reflex Faith dodged the first two, dancing wildly. Then it dawned on her. Her opponent wanted to dodge. She was counting on it.

The next swing of the dagger was very straightforward, a swing right in front of her. Faith braced herself and then jumped into the swing instead of away, letting one dagger bury itself into her side as the other lodged into the leather vest covering shoulder. It was risky, beyond risky, but it was what she needed to do. She was now pushing up against Makira, feeling the avian’s breath on her face. She fought back a scream of pain as she felt her own blood soaking into her clothing.

Dizziness threatened to overwhelm her. She called Maya’s picture into her mind, the she-wolf’s onyx eyes and beautiful silver coat. Her lupine grin and quirky personality. Her undying loyalty. The dizziness passed and she snarled, the sound coming out more beastial than human.

Faith watched Makira spring away, flipping over backwards, reaching for her whip. No. She would not have that chance.

Faith lunged forward and the whip hit empty air, since she already had a head start from pushing herself into Makira’s daggers. She held her sword in front of her as she threw herself at Makira, aiming the point of the blade into the exposed stomach of her foe as the avian recovered from her blackflip and whip attack.

Blood was pouring from her wounds and her head was starting to get dizzy from blood-loss but she was not going to lose this opportunity. She had her. The avian wasn’t expecting the attack and she wasn’t prepared. Faith inhaled sharply and threw all of her weight behind the blow.

“Dodge this.” She murmured in a harsh voice.

[Makira]

Makira had no choice. Her enemy was right in front of her, getting ready to run her through. Even though the very fabric of her being wanted her to win, Makira couldn’t think of a way to do it, until she remembered she had been taught a way to reduce the damage this attack would do with just a little shift in weight.

Makira did just that, remembering the lessons she had learned so long ago from Maera, the Nightmare Thief, and the most powerful Dark spell caster Makira had ever known. The shift in weight was just enough that Makira fell just right to be sliced by the blade going, by, but not enough to be in any real danger for quite awhile. “Dear girl, you’ve just lost…” Makira said, picking up her daggers from the floor and assuming a position unlike any she had ever assumed before. Her whip was left on the floor, where it would wait until the fight was over.

Makira’s wings flapped lightly as she thought of what her teacher would have to say to right at that very moment. She could see Maera smiling sadistically as she watched her student completely annihilating the student of another thief in the Silent Hand. It was this that made Makira feel most alive. It was Maera being proud of her that drove her to heights of power unlike any she had ever experienced before in her life.

It was what drove her to follow in Maera’s footsteps as a being of Darkness, one who melds with the Shadows and steals from other people to make a living. She never stole from those of less means than herself, but she still stole in order to keep herself and the other members of the Silent Hand alive. It was a sad existence, but it was one Makira had chosen. She was smart enough to become on of the leading businesswomen of the world, and would never be stopped in her endeavors. It was mainly her attitude toward life that made her the thief she was today, apart from Maera’s teachings. It was her attitude that she was stealing from those who stole from the common folk, and she was giving it back to the very people who had been stolen from. In that sense, she was not doing anything wrong at all.

Makira stepped back into reality for a moment, to look at Faith with eyes completely devoid of any emotion. Makira’s malice was cold, and she would defeat her opponent with excruciating certainty. She was going to do something she thought she would never do. She was going to use on of Maera’s fighting techniques for herself.

A long time into the past, Makira had attempted this maneuver to no avail, but now she was sure she would be able to easily do it. She spun her daggers in her hands, her eyes watering as she thought of her missing teacher, and she threw one at her opponent, following directly behind the thrown dagger, only to duck under it and attack the abdominal region of her opponent’s body.

Without knowing how, Makira heard Maera saying, “You’ve done it. You’ve finally learned the attack that took me seven hundred years to perfect. Dear child, you’ve finally done it. Now, surpass these skills. I don’t want you to come to find me until you have surpassed the strength I had before leaving. Don’t stop fighting until you’ve surpassed me, and then come find me. Then… I will see what my teaching has done for you. We’ll see if you truly are worthy of gaining the leadership of the Silent Hand.

Makira, after finishing the attack, looked back at Faith, not only to see if her attack had hit, but also to see what was going to happen next. Makira was losing blood, but not at the rate that Faith was, and Faith would pass out before Makira even thought of being tired. The adrenaline allowed her to ignore her wounds for the time being, but the pain was starting to come, and Makira would soon need medical attention, as would Faith. It was not their fault, but they would need nothing more so than this.

Lira, on the other hand, was still working on her opponent, Maya. She dodged the attack on her neck, only getting some saliva on her from the overgrown mutt. She was not going to go down. She had seen Maera’s teaching first hand, and experienced Makira’s memories simultaneously with her. She was going to defeat this wolf, and she was only going to be able to do so with this one last attack. She screeched loudly as she plunged to the wolf, prepared to use her talons to put the wolf in a sleeper hold. She, like Makira, had no want of killing her opponents. It would just be a waste of good, powerful people that the melancholy of this world needed.

[Blue_Angel_eyes]

((I apologize for both the bunnying and extreme cheese-tasticness of this post, but both have been okayed by Makira :) ))

No…

Faith saw her chance just as she tumbled by Makira, falling to the ground, her weight causing her to fall forward. Her glazed blue eyes locked onto it as she connected solidly with the floor.

A door.

But more than that, there was a crack of sunlight showing from underneath it. Sunlight meant outdoors. Outdoors meant a chance.

She lurched towards the door, throwing herself forward with all of her strength. She had a sudden surge of power that only comes to dying animals. She saw the world getting blurry before her eyes and fought it back. She wouldn’t fall, not when she was this close.

Faith felt a sudden sharp pain flare up and she cried out in pain. A dagger was now protruding from her left shoulder. She fell to the ground, reaching numbly up with her right hand and ripping the dagger from her body. She began crawling across the floor, trying to stand but failing. She still held Makira’s bloody dagger in her trembling hand.

She heard the shuffle as Makira tried to make an attack. Her opponent, however, wasn’t expecting her noble wood-elven opponent to be crawling on the ground and her attack hit empty air.

It seemed like an eternity passed until Faith finally found herself against the old wooden door. She forced herself to stand, looking behind her but not even really caring where Makira was. She tried to open the door but it stuck. With a noise crossbred between a cry and a curse, she weakly slammed her first into the door.

She heard a creaking of a board and remembered that she didn’t have the time to do something like sit here and pout about how she wanted the door to open. If she wanted to win, she had to fight.

With a strange cry somewhere between a growl and a scream she threw her shoulder into the door. It rustled but didn’t open. She screamed her frustration, the world swimming in front of her. Blood was smeared on the door from her bleeding shoulder but she didn’t care. With all of the strength she had remaining in her body she threw herself at the door.

With a creak, the door fell open and Faith plummeted through it.

What she found herself in was a courtyard, walled in all sides by a tall stonewalls. But the walls didn’t matter. What mattered was the carpet of grass she found herself lying on. She could sense the pulsing root system under her finger-tips. She dragged herself a few feet forward and then collapsed.

Makira chased after the fleeing elf and paused in the doorway. She saw Faith collapsed on the grass, unmoving. For a moment, she feared the elf dead and then… And then the fallen archer was surrounded in a green glow.

“Re…Rejuvenate.” Faith whispered to herself, her voice weak and hoarse.

Makira watched as the glow became stronger and soon she couldn’t see Faith through it at all, it was simply a ball of green energy sitting in the middle of the courtyard. Slowly, the energy faded and Faith was standing, dagger in one hand, sword in the other.

“Time’s up. Rule’s change.” Faith hissed. The bleeding had slowed to almost nothing in her side and her shoulder, although it was still bleeding, wasn’t critically dangerous anymore. There was color in her face, not the flushed paleness of her earlier blood-loss. Her stance was funny, favoring her right side. Her hold on the dagger was loose, her fingers spasming slightly. Makira’s thrown dagger had struck some nerves and now she had little control over her left arm. Still, her right hand was fine, and that held her short-sword at the ready, eyes glaring coldly at Makira.

“Let’s finish this, one way or another.” She whispered, eyes holding Makira’s.

Maya saw the flash of talons going for her unguarded neck and snarled. With a flash of teeth she tried to clamp her powerful jaws around one of the phoenix’s talons. Whether she succeeded or not, she wasn’t sure, since the next thing that happened was the pair hit the ground. Maya’s teeth slammed even tighter shut, although around air or the brittle bones of a bird’s leg had yet to be seen.

[Makira]

Makira screamed in rage as she saw Faith stand. “After all of my planned attacks, now this has to happen? No! I won’t allow it!” Makira’s rage was beyond control now, and she was going to do whatever it took to defeat this little child that stood before her. “You will be defeated, if it is the last thing I ever do!” Makira screamed. Her body was throbbing with pain, and she knew she would not be able to last much longer. How? How could this retched girl have carried on for so long against my attacks? It’s impossible… No one has that kind of resilience.

Makira grasped her last remaining dagger close to her body, and said, “My dagger, my heart… This will not end until I say so!” As Makira said this, she felt her strength returning, little by little. It was going to be her last stand of this fight, but that was okay. As long as she was able to fight, she would. This was the last of her energy, and she would have to use it well. “Maera! I promise I will not give in to this petulant girl! Give me the strength you had when you and Lorenor defeated that Wind Elemental! I need that strength…”

Makira stood her ground before Faith, seeing her for what she was. A healer… It was all Makira could do not to cry. She knew now that Faith would be out of magical energies, much as Makira herself was. This was going to end the fight, one way or the other. Makira smiled as she approached Faith. Makira’s eyes closed for a moment as she tried to remember every detail of this fight up till now. She was bleeding heavily, and her mind was beginning to slow down from the pain, but this last rush was all she needed to prove to herself, to the Nightmare Thief: her teacher, that she was ready. She was ready at long last to take up the true leadership of the Silent Hand.

“You stand between me and what I want, now. I cannot let you win, because to do so would be belittling everything I believe in. You will fall this day, elf!” Makira screamed as her last attack was finally ready to be recognized. She ran up to Faith, her dagger drawn, but did not slash her at the front. She instead flipped over Faith, her wings extending in the open air, and fell behind her, her dagger poised perfectly to get Faith in the one place she would be unable to recover from. “My dagger, your heart.” were Makira’s last words as she plunged the dagger into what was hopefully her opponent’s back, right where her heart was.

As that attack finished, Makira passed out, her body falling onto the grass, her mind blacking out for the time being. Makira’s last, muddled thoughts were Maera, I hope I made you proud… She would not know until next she met Maera, and she had no idea where the Demoness Thief was.

As for Lira, she did get caught by the dog’s teeth, but kept her claw-like hold on its neck. It was hard to do so when one of her legs was cracking like a chicken leg, but she would not release her hold until the dog passed out, not with either leg. The pain was immense, but now Lira wanted to make Makira proud. Makira… I won’t give up… Not until we win…

[Blue_Angel_eyes]

The wolf let out a choked whimper as she hit the ground, hearing several cracks as her body crumpled. She fought the darkness creeping in her vision but lost as the bird’s crippling claws won their own battle and darkness claimed her.

I’m…. Sorry…. Ariana… the wolf sent before finally succumbing to the darkness and losing consciousness.

Faith’s eyes snapped past Makira through the door. She felt the wolf’s connection die between them and suddenly emotions wracked through her. Maya. Her Maya. The wolf was dead; Faith knew it.

And that was when everything changed. Faith’s eyes dulled, becoming cold empty orbs. She raised her head as Makira began her long speech but she barely heard the words and offered none in return. Speech meant nothing. Her friend was dead. The only constant in her life was gone, and this wench was to blame. She shook her head as her chest rose and fall in erratic patterns.

Her world sharpened. Everything became too harsh and too bright. The rage in her was contorting her senses, emptying all other emotions from her and fine-tuning everything else. There was no remorse or pity left in her. She wanted the witch to pay.

Makira lunged and Faith and the elf charged to meet her. When the avian leapt over her head, time seemed to slow for the elf (who no longer thought of herself as Faith. She was beyond that) and she turned, using her heightened reflexes and strange set of mind. She threw up her sword before Makira had even hit the ground and as her opponent lunged, the elf slammed the blade down to deflect the blow. It sent both weapons flying, but the elf didn’t care.

She slammed her knee into Makira’s stomach, using her elbow to shove into her back. With a gurgling sound of disgust and fury, the elf pushed the unconscious avian away. She moved forward to finish the kill but suddenly the sharp haze faded. There was a tickle in her mind and the elf closed her eyes. There was Maya in her mind, faint, very faint, but there.

It was Faith who opened her eyes and looked over at her foe, whose blood was straining the grass. She knelt by the avian and placed one hand to the earth to try and heal the creature but the earth would not respond to her pleas. Whether exhaustion was stopping her or the energies would not travel through her after her little display of rage, Faith did not want to think about.

She picked up a discarded knife and cut a strip from the bottom of her cotton shirt. She bound the worst of her opponents wound and then moved twoard the door. She limped a long, feeling the wind on her skin. It felt cold.

She entered the house and everything looked darker, more foreboding, and yet more surreal at the same time. She ran her hands along a wooden banister and felt the rough grain under her hand. The house smelled of blood and scorched wood. The smell was making Faith sick.

In the middle she saw the hole that the firebird had made. She leaned over and ran her hand over the opening. Ash stained her pale fingers. She sighed and turned, lowering herself over the edge until she held on by her blackened fingertips. Then she let go.

She hit the ground with a groan. The fall had been farther than she had expected and her body wasn’t up to full strength by any means. She could smell the phoenix, the mixture of brimstone and fire. Faith struggled to her feet and turned to speak to the darkness.

“The battle is over; your mistress has fallen. Go to her.”

She didn’t wait to see if the bird would do as she said or not. She simply turned and walked to the limp wolf. Her heart raced as she saw the flank rise and fall shakily. She felt relief flood through her. She had been convinced, until she saw the shallow breathing, that her friend was dead. Somehow, in the back of her mind, it was easier to grieve than to hope, safer that way.

She ran to her friend and buried her face in the bloodied fur. Beneath the smell of dust and soot she could smell the earthy tones of the forest and that was comfort. Her hands knotted themselves in with the fur as Faith began to cry. The mixture of tears and dirt created mud on her cheeks but she didn’t care. She sat and sobbed into the fur of her old friend, letting out the fear of almost losing her friend and the terror of the monster she had almost become.

Part of her had loved that moment of uncaring rage. It had possibly saved her life. But, as she sat and clung to her companion, Faith knew in her mind that the cost had been far too great. Her humanity was not worth an edge in combat. Not ever. Her fingers tightened their grip on the silver hair and her cries continued to fill the dark musty basement.

In a while she would rise and find a way to get both her friend and herself out of her. In a while she would go and retrieve her sword. In a while she would check on her avian opponent. But for now she simply needed to remember who she was.

Her opponent had fallen, but she truly won?

[Letho]

General Notes: I have to admit that this fight felt somewhat overdrawn, and considering that it was basically a two-on-two fight (one PC+one familiar each), I think that’s saying something about it. I think that’s a consequence of powergaming that occurred on several places in this battle, because when you powergame, you evade attacks that you shouldn’t (or execute some that you shouldn’t be able to), thus prolonging the whole thing. I think my biggest advice to both of you is to try to add more realism to your writing. Also, making a typo in the very title of the thread (I figure that you wanted to use either “intertwine” or “intervene”) usually doesn’t make for a good first impression. ;)

Anyways, onto the rubric. Makira’s scores are RED, and Blue_Angel_Eyes are BLUE, in tune with her username.


CONTINUITY – 5 – 5

I’ve seen quite a lot of random battles that take in the Citadel and most of them happen just because. Because somebody got bored or because they wanted to do some battling quick. That’s what I think happened here. There was no backstory, no real reason why either of you got to the Citadel, nothing that would add a deeper meaning to the entire conflict. I think both of you just wanted to blow off some steam and decided to make a battle. Now, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it can harm your score since you basically throw your characters into a fight with no real explanation. Try to change that in the future. Try starting the whole thing outside the Citadel. A trivial example would be a barroom brawl that goes too far and the participants decide to finish it in the Citadel.

SETTING - 5 – 4

You made a mistake here that most people make. You start off with a good description, placing your character into a certain environment, but then, once the action begins, that environment becomes completely irrelevant. I know most of the time there’s no time to write each and every detail when somebody is swinging a blade to your face, but the setting shouldn’t just fade away from the picture once the action starts. Also, there were some things that seemed a bit irrational to me. Like the time that Lira fell through the floor. Usually, basements don’t have such high ceilings that somebody can plunge into them as if it was an abyss. I gave a slight advantage to Makira here because she tried to use some objects from the setting, like the table and the chair.

PACING - 4 – 4

Aside from the aforementioned powergaming that hurt your pacing, I think that Maya and Lira didn’t help much either. Seeing that both of you are rather fresh with your characters, I can understand that it’s sometimes difficult to balance the action between your characters and familiars. At the beginning, it wasn’t so bad since both of you tried to intertwine the action, making both the PC and the familiar act together, but soon action separated and now you had two battles between which you constantly had to jump. And as it usually is when you try to do two things at once, you wind up doing none. And if you absolutely have to separate the action, make sure you make the transit between the scenes more smooth, using words like “Meanwhile” to start your paragraphs when you shift between the PC and the familiar.

DIALOGUE - 3 – 4,5

Here’s a piece of advice that works every time when it comes to battles; don’t make your characters make speeches in the middle of action. It makes the whole thing sound like a B-class action movie. Realistically, you don’t have time to do that in a battle, and by doing it anyways, you kill your pacing and make the whole thing sound cheesy. Don’t tell your opponent that your character can see through his tactics, don’t announce your next attack. I know it’s sometimes hard to resist because it seems to you that your writing is missing dialogue, but try to resist it. Battle is a place where the skills and weapons speak. Advantage to Faith because she kept her dialogue more realistic, though you could live without some of the one-liners like “Dodge this!” for example.

ACTION - 3 – 2

The numbers seems harsh, I know, but let me explain. You both are level zero at the moment. Level zeros cannot fire three arrows in a volley with immaculate accuracy over and over again. Level zeros cannot parry arrows with their daggers or dodge an arrow from an almost point blank range. Level zeros can’t brush off wounds as if they don’t happen. All of that happened in this battle. Wounds hurt, bleed, hinder your movement, irritate, burn, screw up your focus, sap, tire a person. On top of that, there was a lot of delays between turns. Like, somebody would attack in their post with a fierce attack and then the opponent managed to have a personal epiphany despite the attack coming at hi, full speed. Also, sometimes both you disregard the attack of the other. I think this is because there are several things that each of you do in your post. Try to simplify it and pick up the pace. Don’t have a flashback when arrows are coming at you.

PERSONA - 7 – 6,5

Probably the best aspect of the both of you. You set firm foundations to your characters, Makira keeping her cool most of the time and Faith going bestial once her opponent pushed her too far. The little flashbacks that Makira had are not necessarily bad, but they were badly time, hurting your pacing. Advantage to Makira because I felt that Faith trying to heal her opponent at the end was a bit redundant.

MECHANICS - 5,5 – 5

Proofread, proofread, proofread. And run through a spellchecker just in case. There were a lot of typos and they kept repeating themselves throughout the thread. There was also a renegade sentence fragment here and there. Nothing more to say here. Just try to keep your eyes open and re-read what you wrote and you will improve in this aspect soon. Slight advantage to Makira since she had slightly less mistakes.

TECHNIQUE - 4 – 4

This is hard for me to score. Neither of you used any of the advanced literary devices, but you didn’t do anything wrong either. Your styles are rather simple, sometimes choppy, but they get the message across. Try to expand your writing with some finesse though. A good comparison can oftentimes do a better job then an intricate description of something. Here’s an example, paraphrased: “She saw her opponent launch an arrow at her. Her instincts took over, forcing her body in a jump to her right.” Now, instead of that, why not add some flavor and say: “Her opponent’s bow made a dull thwump!, rifling doom towards her in the shape of an arrow. There was no time to think, no time to breathe, no time to be afraid. There were only her reflexes that took over the control of her body, making her leap sideways like a panther.” Granted, it’s not the best example ever, but I think you can see the difference.

CLARITY - 6 – 6,5

Good, but I think both of you are in danger of making your writing seem too clear. Short sentences often do this. They state what is happened with lack of refinement and additional information. Also, take additional care when you write the sections that refer t your familiars.

WILD CARD - 7 – 7

I’m giving a 7 here because the rubric might seem a bit harsh. It really wasn’t a bad battle and you two are good writers, but I think that, like with diamonds that just came out of a mine, you two need some refinement and some polishing. And what better way to do it then by writing, and writing, and then writing some more. Practice doesn’t make you perfect, but it most definitely improves your skills.



TOTAL SCORE - 49,5 – 48,5

Makira is victorious!!!
Congratulations to you both!


Makira gets 550 EXP, 50 GP
Blue_Angel_eyes gets 200 EXP, 50 GP

EXP/GP ADDED!!