016573 vs. Xos: Re-Match

[Breaker]

"Xos Xilanthes..."

I turned the name over and over in my mind, matching the odd alliteration to its appropriate face. Xos was a man I had met several weeks ago, although "met" may not be the right term. We had fought to the death in a crazy staircase filled room created by the Radasanthian Citadel's monks. At first sight, I had underestimated Xos. He was easily six or seven inches taller than me, but probably weighed fifty pounds less, making him awkwardly tall and gangly. Seeing an opponent so physically weaker than myself, I had assumed the battle would be easy. It was around that time that the wizard had tossed a fireball at me, which I barely avoided. The fight from that point on had been quick, but painful for both of us; he opened several flesh wounds on my back and neck, and I managed to crush his windpipe before almost bleeding to death. After we had both been healed, Xos told me he hoped we would meet again one day. At the time I thought he was joking. Now, however, he was paying in gold to get a chance to fight me again.

Seated in my Dajas Pagoda arena, I tried to puzzle out why the wizard would want to fight me badly enough that he would travel to Scara Brae and pay for a Pagoda match up. Revenge seemed like the most obvious solution, but a rather silly one. From what I had seen of Xos he was an intelligent man, and not the type to get angry over having lost a duel in the Citadel. Someone has to lose. I began to wonder if perhaps he had gained some new powers, improved upon his magic, or maybe learned to fight with his hands. "Is he trying to prove himself by beating me in a re-match?" Unless Xos had become more powerful, that hardly seemed likely. The first time we fought had been in an arena picked by him, with his magical powers unknown to me. Now, I knew at least some of what he could do, and I had the home advantage. Confused, I reclined in my chair to wait.

The sun was an hour from its zeinth, or maybe two. Xos was scheduled to arrive at noon. I wondered if he would be early, or late, or right on time. My guess was early. If he was looking to prove something, either to himself or me, he would be eager. Thinking about our last battle, I felt adrenaline start to flow. There was something especially dangerous, and exciting, about battling a wizard. For me, an unarmed fight, or even a battle with weapons was like a chess game: each player had their tools, and their skills, and had to use them to out-maneuver their opponent. Fighting a wizard, on the other hand, was like playing chess with someone who might pick up the board and hit you with it at any time. Too pumped to wait casually, I sprang to my feet and began working out, taking myself through an intensive plyometrics and stretching routine. Fighting a wizard, I needed to be ready for anything.

[Xos]

Xos thought again why he wanted a rematch with a man that had managed to beat and kill him once before. and then he remembered meeting his Evil Mirror Twin.

He had felt so weak when confronted with his dark side. It was also what lead him to realise he was no longer a student in an academic setting, but a wizard in a wild land far behind in terms of technology. He needed to become stronger, and the man he had faced at the Citadel, he seemed to be strong. If it took a battle in this new Pagoda to meet this man again and learn how to be strong, then so be it.

He entered the Pagoda, and paid the prerequisite amount of gold. He needed to become smarter in the ways of this world, and by becoming smarter, more powerful, and stronger. Perhaps if he became Stronger, he could go home.

High Noon...

Xos stepped into the Arena.

"So, here I am. You might be wondering why I might pay to find you again. I found a magical mirror that brought forth a me I didn't like. It talked to me and showed me aspects of myself I didn't want to admit were there, and showed me just how weak I really was. You seem to know the secret to strength, so I will fight you again, and perhaps learn the secret to strength.
This time however, let us try not to kill one another" Xos said.

[Breaker]

I stood in the centre of the arena, sweat glistening on my bare torso, breathing a little hard. Beneath my feet, hard practice mats shifted slightly, yielding to my weight. The mats held the shape of an octagon, as did the entire room. I had requested this; I liked octagons. Each edge of the mat was nine feet in length, making for a large, spacious sparring area. The mats covered nearly half of the entire room, but still left wide alleys on all sides. The walls of my arena were reminiscent of a rustic log cabin, made from solid oak. Each wall measured an equal twenty feet. It was a large building, and I intended to put it to good use. Xos was the first of many warriors who I hoped to fight, and teach, if they were willing to learn.

My workout had started with push-ups, crunches, sit-ups, leg lifts, and jump squats, loosening up and working my entire body. I had then moved on to some fairly intense stretching, and, selecting a bokkan from the wall, worked through a few sword forms. Returning the wooden sword to its place, I strode to the middle of the arena, where I stood, watching the sun.

It was nearly at its peak; Xos would be arriving soon. My adrenaline was up, my blood pumping, and I wanted to keep it that way. I crouched, then leaped straight up, extending my arms and grabbing onto an iron bar. The "ceiling" of my arena was not truly a ceiling at all, but rather a grid work of black iron bars forming many small octagons, like a bee hive. It stood ten feet up from the floor. I gripped either side of one of these octagons and heaved my body upwards. The diameter of each iron octagon was two feet, and I had to go through sideways in order to accommodate for my broad shoulders. With a final effort I pulled myself through and stood, carefully balanced on the grid work. I looked up at the roof, smiling. It was a huge dome made from glass, extending easily twenty five feet higher than the ceiling. The entire roof was one massive skylight, and with the sun beating down directly above, it lit the arena beautifully. I spent some time walking along individual bars, working on my balance. At last I dropped through a hole, carefully catching a bar and doing a quick set of twenty chin-ups before dropping to the ground.

It was nearly noon, and I sensed Xos would be arriving quite soon. Jogging to the south wall of the building, I retrieved my nunchaku from where it lay on a small coffee table, and tucked it into the back of my belt. Two comfortable recliners sat on either side of the table, facing the south wall. The wall was made entirely of shelves, which were filled with many leather-bound books. Most of them were about martial arts, or fighting in some sense or another. Some, however, detailed methods of defending against magic. I found myself wishing I had had a chance to read some of them before my second meeting with Xos. "No time for that." I told myself. Just then, the door opened.

Xos entered through the large double doors, and they swung shut behind him, locking instantly. Although the door was opened by a simple latch from the outside, on the inside a combination was required. The dial on the door reminded me of a safe, like in the old movies. I did not know whether it would be possible to "crack" the lock on my door; however I did know that no one knew the combination other than me.

The wizard spoke, and it was as if he had read my mind. All of the questions I had been asking myself were answered in his simple statement. "Can he read my mind?" I wondered. In the Citadel, Xos had not demonstrated any telepathic powers. Even now, there was no evidence that he was any kind of psychic. "Maybe he's just very polite." I consoled myself. Smiling in as friendly a manner as I could, I stepped forward onto the mats, inviting him to do the same with a simple gesture from my right hand.

"Well Xos... if you want to become stronger, you may need to start working out. I could help you find a decent daily plan for that." I sensed that there was something more to the wizard's request, though. I just wasn't sure what it was.
"Are you looking to become physically stronger, or a better fighter? I could teach you to fight with your bare hands, or if you prefer, with weapons." I gestured from side to side. The west and east walls of the building were covered in a vast array of weapons. The east wall held only practice weapons; swords, daggers, axes and various other fighting implements made entirely from wood. They could deal a nasty bruise, but nothing more. The west wall, on the other hand, carried many real, battle ready instruments of death. They were all made from the same black iron as the bars in the ceiling. There were simple daggers, hammers, and axes, as well as more exotic weapons; Kamas, katanas, and naginatas were all in evidence. I was far from being an expert in the use of any of these weapons, but had a basic understanding of how to use most of them.

"So tell me, what is it that you are here to learn? If you're looking to improve your magic, I'm afraid all I can do is offer a moving target." I grinned, waiting for the wizard to respond.

[Xos]

"In all the stories I've read, both historical, and made up, Wizards were never very strong physicly, however I have the blood of dragons in me, and it stirs in response to a more agressive civilization. With time I imagine I will gain the attributes normally associated with one of draconic decent.

My path though, is magic. True enough you cannot help me learn more, you can help me gain something resembling a fighting technique. As you well remember, I was more of a disorganised accident than a decent opponet. It was only luck that I managed to really get you. So help me if you will, learn how to fight, but keep in mind my magic. I will need to incorporate that. Any ideas you might have, even if its a magic skill I do not yet know, I would be glad to hear them as we go. So without further ado, help me learn to fight properly." Xos said. He stepped onto the mat.

He closed his hand partially as though holding something invisible. He concentrated, and worked hard. Sparks jumped between his fingers, but nothing more.

"Almost. I am working to gain the power of Electricity." Xos said.

He stood there, arms spread wide. A ball of fire in the shape of a Hydrogen Atom floated there. He paused, and made another, this one Oxygen. A line of fire connected the two. He made a third, another Hydrogen. A line of fire connected all three atoms into the shape of a water Molecule.

"I made burning water! Get it, Fire, Water? I kill myself. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Xos laughed heartily at his own nerdy joke. The fire disappeated.

[Breaker]

I smiled and laughed, if a little awkwardly, at the wizard's joke. I remembered enough from high school science to know that a water molecule was composed of two hydrogen atoms, and one oxygen. "Hence, H2O," I reminded myself. It was an odd joke to make, though. "He'll do okay, just so long as he doesn't try to make a career in stand up comedy." It seemed to me that the wizard had come, essentially, for some sparring practice. Although it is important to work out to keep your body toned, and learn proper technique so as to cause maximum damage, there is no better way to learn to fight than by... well, fighting. It was for that reason that I had gone to the Citadel weeks ago, and for the same reason, I had accepted the position as a Dajas Pagoda warrior. The meager salary I would earn from the latter did not hurt either, but mostly, I was in it for the battle experience. The fact that the wizard had this insight made me feel he had potential as a fighter. Filing this thought carefully away, I began giving instructions.

"Alright Xos," I said, pronouncing his name carefully. It was odd for such a short word to give me so much trouble. "I'll do my best to help you learn a thing or two about the fine art of combat. Give me a second." With quick, powerful movements I strode to the east wall, selecting a wooden buckler and staff before returning to the mat. The buckler was made from solid oak, with a coat of polish on the front. A simple tool, but it would be effective under the right circumstances. I slid the straps over my right forearm, wearing it like a watch. The staff was a fine piece, as thick as three of my fingers, made from yew, but hollow. It was excellent for parrying or striking, but would not cause much pain due to its lack of weight. After the wizard's exhibition of fire magic, I felt like showing off a little myself. Planting my feet in a wide horse stance, I began to spin the staff in front of me. It tumbled end over end in a figure eight, changing direction in an intricate pattern. My hands became a blur as I spun the bo faster and faster. Soon the air sang in a high-pitched whistling key, and it was music to my ears.

I spun the staff for a few seconds more, then stopped abruptly. I gripped it with both ends near one end, about a foot apart, with the opposite end pointed across my body at Xos' left shoulder. My body had naturally folded into a tense battle crouch, the staff defending me, the buckler protecting my forward wrist. From this position, I addressed my opponent. "Or is he my student now?" I wondered.

"You may select any weapons you'd like from either wall. Or, if you would rather use your natural abilities..." I grinned slightly, thrilled at the cliché;

"Attack me with everything you have."

[Xos]

Xos grinned and stood.

"Alright, here's a trick I devised fighting my Mirror. either that, or I try you in a battle of wits, but the finer points of The Dichotomy paradox would probably be boring." Xos said. While he was talking he formed an Energy shield, behind Joshua.

"You know, making a spell out of Zeno of Elea's Paradoxes of motion is quite an interesting concept. The power involved in such a thing, enormous." Xos said. As he spoke he drew his hand back, pulling the Energy Shield towards him with the intent of knocking Josh over.

If it succeeded, the Shield would disappate and xos would rush over to hit his opponet with a fist full of fireball in the back.

If it failed, it would simply surround Xos, and he would prepare himself for an attack.

[Breaker]

Crouched in a battle-ready position, I listened to Xos as he talked his way through several paradoxes and theories. None of what he was saying seemed relevant to our duel. I was suspicious that he was just shooting his mouth, trying to draw my attention away from some surprise attack. Instead of focusing on his words, I watched his body. Although I had no way of telling when he would cast a spell, or what the spell would do, I knew that many magics were accompanied by hand gestures. When he had made the fiery model of a hydrogen molecule, he spread his arms before him. I realized this could have been for effect, but recalled other evidence to the contrary. In our previous battle at the Citadel, he had made a throwing motion when launching a fireball towards me. As I waited for his first move, I noticed him draw his hand backwards. It was a subtle move, but my keen eyes caught the motion. "Looks like the magic is about to happen," I thought, "Okay Josh, get ready for anything."

While I readied myself to dodge an incoming fireball, an unseen force slammed into me from behind. It was as though a strong man had shoved me suddenly in the back, and I pitched forward. The attack took me completely by surprise, but was nothing my well-trained body couldn't handle. As I fell, I curled into a loose ball with my staff held out perpendicular to the right side of my body, and rolled on my left shoulder. The mats yielded fractionally to my well-muscled back, providing ideal cushioning for the roll. I came out of it crouched low, in control, and ready to fight.

Already, the wizard was descending upon me. From my crouched position he seemed even taller than normal, a giant racing towards me with a fistful of fire. A very thin giant. I was tempted to dive forwards and tackle him, but again recalled our first battle. In the Citadel I had hit Xos with a double-leg takedown straight out of jiu jitsu 101, only to have him open my back up with a series of small explosions. "Well, I won't make that mistake again." Although my superior weight, strength and skill would give me a huge advantage in a grappling situation, Xos' magic could cause a lot of harm in very little time. This fact was magnified by the vision of his fire-clad fist speeding towards me. Without releasing my staff, I brought up my right forearm. The punch glanced off my buckler, a weak strike compared to what a real fighter might have delivered. Despite the lack of power behind the blow, I was again reminded of how dangerous Xos was when I felt heat transfer right through my solid oaken buckler. It was at that point I decided I did not want to be anywhere near Xos Xilanthes.

Rather than attack, I reversed the move I had used earlier. Holding the staff to my right side, I fell backwards, rolling this time on my right shoulder. Again I felt the mats give slightly, and I was comforted by the familiarity. "This is my arena," I reminded myself, "And my fight. I should show this wizard how a real warrior operates." I completed the back roll, landing on my feet in the same battle stance I had started in. Beginning to circle slowly to my left, I spun the staff swiftly before me, staying ready.

I was impressed. I had told Xos to attack me with everything he had, and the wizard had done just that. What was more, he had used a clever one-two combination; an initial attack to put me off balance, and secondary one to cause some real damage. "If I hadn't been quick enough to get to my feet, he might have finished me then and there." I had no way of telling how much damage a punch from a fire-laced fist could do. Panting slightly, I applauded my opponent.

"Congratulations Xos, you've just proven yourself a worthy adversary. You're offensive planning has improved since we last met. Of course, anyone will tell you that the best offense is a good... DEFENSE!"

As the last word left my lips, I sprang forward a half pace. Continuing the spinning motion which I had started with my staff, I whipped the hollow weapon forward, striking at the outside of the wizard's left knee. With a proper quarterstaff the blow would be enough to cripple a man; the hollow bo staff I held, on the other hand, would probably do little more than create a distraction. It was a distraction I wanted though. Following the first strike I immediately reversed the bo's motion, whirling it in a tight arc over my head before aiming a second strike at the right side of Xos' jaw. Even if both attacks landed, I doubted they would hurt very much.

"But he'll sure as hell know who he's dealing with."

[Xos]

Xos smiled. Maybe he wasn't as bad as he originally though. He noticed Josh lunging forward with his staff.

Oh no he doesn't.

Xos leaped backwards, but stayed in the air. A little platform of light supporting his weight, coming directly from his shoes. Both attacks passed harmlessly before Xos.

Xos concentrated on dodging and keeping away from his opponet. Meanwhile, Josh could see with his own two eyes Xos creating small pipes with his hands out of nothing, and asembling them.

Xos had crafted a blow gun and made a small pellet. He aimed at Josh as best he could, and blew with all his lung power, launching a small attack.

"That's where that bat had come from last time. I can create small objects. I can also assemble parts into greater objects. Therefore, I can create and assemble various weapons on the fly such as this aluminum blowgun and steel pellets." Xos said.

He put the blowgun in an inside pocket, and strapped to the inside of his robe, was a Nihon staff. He pulled it free, and dropped to the ground.

"Purchased this at the Bazaar." Xos said.

He held it in a clumsy inexperienced manner, but at least he tried.

[Breaker]

I watched the wizard hop backwards onto what seemed like nothing. A closer look showed me that he was standing on a thin beam of still light; clearly another of his magic tricks. I was fully impressed by Xos' quick evasion of my attack. For all that he seemed awkward and gangly, he moved surprisingly quickly. I was shaping up for another attempt when the wizard began assembling a short pipe, the pieces of which seemed to be appearing from thin air in his hands. At the mention of a baseball bat, I remembered how Xos had created a bat from nothing in our previous battle. I had disarmed him of it fairly easily, at the time. I watched as he put the pipe to his lips and exhaled harshly. Before my helpless eyes, a small steel pellet zinged through the air, on a collision course with my heart.

With a slight stinging sensation, the pellet bounced off my pectoral muscle, arcing slightly before tumbling to the mat. It bounced once then came to rest nestled in a small indentation. I looked down at the remnant of what was possibly one of the most pathetic attacks anyone had ever attempted on me. With a disdainful flick of my staff, I sent the pellet skittering across the floor. It rolled freely until running into one of the coffee table's legs, then fell over and lay still. Shaking my head, I looked up at Xos.

"That was an impressive evasive tactic, with the light step, or whatever that was. This blowgun thing on the other hand... if you tried that in a real street fight, you'd have eleven knife wounds before you took the pipe out of your mouth."

I tried to keep my tone light, but serious at the same time. After all, the wizard had come to me to learn to fight, making it my duty to point out his shortcomings. "Maybe the sarcasm was unnecessary. Oh well, he can deal with it." I remembered reading an article about blowguns in a covert weapons magazine. It had talked about how the natives who originally used them for hunting needed to develop massive lungpower. Even with the modern versions, it took a lot of wind to do any kind of damage. "He should know better than to try using an exotic weapon like that." I thought, "Well... now he does."

I was shocked when Xos pulled a staff from beneath his cloak. I'm an extremely observant person, and should have noticed it. "Unless there's some magic in his cloak, too. Damn, I really need to work out a way of knowing when people are using magic." From my ever-present crouched ready position I regarded the wizard. He didn't look like he had any idea of what to do with his staff. I didn't know much more than a few fancy spinning techniques and basic striking combinations, but at least I was comfortable with the thing.

"That's a fine looking weapon you have. Now... let's see you use it. Attack, Xos."

I spoke in the imperative form, commanding action on his part. The order was a test in itself. Bouncing lightly on the balls of my feet, I wondered how the wizard would react.

[Xos]

Xos swung the staff his very hardest intending to knock Josh's head off with it.

"That standing on air trick, that's thanks to my boots. As for the pellet gun, just wait until I increase the power of my Magnetisim. There is a physicist known as Carl Fredrich Gauss, at least, there is in an alternate Reality. He figured out the effects that Electromagnets have on Magnetic accelerators. In other words, he invented a powerful Gun powered solely by magnets. If I can get it strong enough, I can make Diamagnetic Pellets, make the barrel Paramagnetic and thus have a makeshift Gauss gun powered by magic. Its all simple logic." Xos said.

OOC: Of course, that wouldn't be until about level 10 or 12, 15 at the latest.

[Breaker]

The butt end of Xos' nihon quarterstaff arced towards my temple.

The polished wood gleamed red like an ambulance light in the night. Directly overhead now, the sun beat down like an auger through the sky lit ceiling. On the stave's polished face, the light had a mirror-like effect, and in the reflection my eyes saw a memory of a favor I had done for a friend some years earlier.

I grinned. Xos had played right into my hands.

Three years prior, to be exact, Professor James McFaul had taken ill after an office luncheon. The cause: food poisoning. As his secretary found her keys to drive him home, he asked me if I could cover his last lecture for him.

I was attending the luncheon because the girl whose birthday it was celebrating was a... friend of mine. While attending the University, I had taken Professor McFaul's course and seen that particular lecture no less than three times. Since then, we had run into each other at a gym we both used, and started practicing kung fu and staff work together. I figured I knew the material well enough, and agreed.

The lecture was part of a kung fu history course popular among young martial arts enthusiasts. The lesson I was teaching detailed the function and use of every Chinese pole arm from the full stave to the bo staff. I got through the lecture easily enough, covering all the major points which James had taught me years before. Unfortunately, I did not possess his talent for descriptive language, nor his intimate knowledge of the history of kung fu. The result: I finished the lecture in half the time it would have ordinarily taken, and realized I needed to come up with something to occupy the time, and fast.

McFaul had a large assortment of real quarterstaffs, as well as padded ones for practice in a storeroom nearby. I was tempted to hand out practice staves and led the students beat the crap out of each other for awhile, but didn't want to be held accountable for the injuries which they would undoubtedly endure. Instead, I took one real quarterstaff, and one padded one, and offered the students a challenge. I picked a volunteer to go first, handed him the wooden stave, and kept its padded opposite for myself.

"You get one strike to try and hit me." I had instructed the class, then continued; "I'm going to try to defend against your attack, and will retaliate, likewise with only one strike. So be ready to defend yourself."

Many eager students lined up, and the learning began. One by one the martial arts hopefuls picked up the wooden quarterstaff, and each and every single one of them swung for my head. For some reason, when beginners pick up blunt weapons like staves, they always think the best method of attack is to go for a knockout. They don't even think of a thrust for the solar plexus, or a knock on the elbow. One by one, I blocked those headshots easily, and retaliated by gently tripping or clouting my frustrated young opponents.

So I was expecting Xos to swing for my head. In fact, I would have been very surprised if he had done anything else. With smooth, practiced ease I raised my own staff, holding it in both hands parallel to my body. Through calm eyes I watched the nihon stave sweep in, its end on a collision course with the very centre of my staff. It was a textbook defensive maneuver; my hands were on either side of the point of impact, ensuring that his staff would not slide by, and mine would not be knocked away. Already, I was thinking about retaliation. A quick thrust to the wizard's gut seemed in order.

Craaa-ack!

With a sound like an axe splitting kindling, Xos' weapon broke my hollow practice stave clean in two. I felt a moment of fleeting surprise, and then only pain as colors exploded before my eyes.

If the attack had not been slowed by my now broken weapon, I would have been knocked unconscious for sure. Although I managed to stay awake, I staggered away, my temple throbbing, my eyes crossed. It took me three shambling steps to gain control of my wobbly legs, but at last I stood, regaining my defensive crouch, holding both pieces of my busted staff up like escrimas. My head felt like it was being used for a pygmy dulcimer, and my legs barely managed to support my weight. I needed time to recover; a few minutes would do, but I needed to keep Xos from attacking until I could think straight.

Luckily for me, the mage liked the sound of his own voice. I tried to focus on what he was saying, figuring that if I responded, I might buy myself a few moments more.

"I've heard of Gauss technology... if you ever succeed in making any magnetic weaponry, be sure to look me up. I could use a firearm." I blinked several times rapidly. My head felt better, the throbbing pain now only echoing dimly of the insides of my skull. My legs no longer felt as if I had just run ten miles flat out. As the cotton cleared out of my brain, I began to formulate a new plan of attack.

"I guess we could both learn a lesson from what just happened; you're only as good as your weapons." I looked down at my muscular, calloused hands, then shifted my attention back to the wizard.
"That's why I normally like fighting with my hands." With that, I hurled both hollow shards of staff at Xos, one after the other.

The attack was a distraction; nothing more. I wanted to occupy the mage's attention so that with a primary move so as to avoid his defensive magic on my follow up. I danced in the wake of the two wooden stick I had thrown, my hands up, ready to defend my tender skull. As I neared the wizard, I drew my right leg back, then kicked out forcefully, aiming a low roundhouse at the outside of his left knee. I wondered how Xos would deal with the crippling leg kick, and also whether I would have used such an unorthodox tactic if my head didn't hurt so badly.

"Whether this is for revenge or to teach him a lesson... he'll learn that magic can't always save him. He'll learn the hard way."

[Xos]

Xos smiled, he seemed to be making progress. Confidence began to surge through him like a burst dam.

He had spied the kick coming at him. Sparks surged around his fingers, a tell tale sign he was going to use Arcane Blast, but instead of the five mini explosions he was used to, and indeed was counting on, one massive non-lethal Blast occured in front of Xos, sending him flying backwards. As he blacked out, two things ran through his mind.

the first was, What in the hell just went wrong?, and the second being, Please don't let there be anything sharp and pointy behind me.

As he hit the wall he slid down and lay on the floor unconcous.

Xos had suffered a miscast and thus his spell blew up on him, literally.

Josh's kick had hit him, but wasn't the largest factor in the failure, Xos was to distracted with his newfound confidence to continue concentrating on his spell, and thus became over confident.

Xos came to several moments later, rolled over and slowly struggled to his feet, his entire body sore.

"I think I just miscast. Are you ok over there?" Xos called over. Due to his close proximity, at least some of the miscast would've hit Josh. Thankfully it was of the non-lethal variety.

Xos shook his head, and resumed his earlier fighting stance, determined to go on. His staff was closer to Josh than it was him.

OOC: Just as a clarifying explanation, the explosion was more likt a balloon popping than a grenade exploding. Only in this case think of a really really big balloon popping. It was just a rush of air strong enough to send Xos flying. Its not just a miscast, but also a sign of his developing magic.

Also, Xos is pronounced sauce, only with a z sound, instead of an s.

[Breaker]

I felt a rush of satisfaction as my kick landed, feeling solid bone to bone contact between my instep and Xos' knee. I smiled in grim determination. My plan was well underway, I would--

--Suddenly, I was sliding across the mats on my back, my ears ringing like a struck gong. I tried to turn the backwards momentum into a roll, to regain my feet, but found myself too disoriented. The friction of my bare flesh on the mats slowed me down before long, and I got to my feet, wincing at the feeling of raw flesh stretching. I could sense that my entire back was red, covered by a large friction burn. "Oh well, I've had worse." I looked over and saw Xos climbing to his feet near the east wall. He ignored the weapons there, and joined me on the mats, taking up a fighting stance, and explaining his miscast. "Well I'll be God damned," I thought, "This wizard's got more fight in him than I thought."

Seeing that Xos was ready to resume the bout, I took three slow, calming breaths-- I was a little bit shaky-- and jumped right back into my battle plan where I had left off. I figured I might be a little slower now, weakened by the strange eruption of Xos' spell. "But if I’m weakened, he will be to." From the wizard's physique, there was no way his stamina or cardio could rival mine. I stepped towards him, and kicked his discarded staff out of the way. He had made no move to pick it up, and I didn't want to get it tangled in my feet. The nihon pole rolled off the mats and slid along the hardwood floor, coming to rest next to the large double doors. Then I increased my pace, covering the distance between myself and the wizard in three quick steps. Within striking range, I drew back my right leg, and quickly lashed out, once again aiming the solid instep of my foot at the outside of Xos' left knee.

It was the exact same attack I had used before; repeating the move served several purposes. First of all, I wanted to see whether or not Xos would be able to defend himself against a leg kick unarmed-- the powerful, low attack is a tricky thing to avoid, because of how little distance the kicker's foot needs to move. Secondly, it was good experience for the wizard. Repeatedly attacking a single weak portion of an opponent's body is something which occurs quite frequently in street combat. Third... I still had a plan shaping up as a fail safe. I did not want to lose my first battle in the Dajas Pagoda.

Immediately after delivering the kick, I danced backwards, a little gun-shy after Xos' first miscast. Raising my voice in a humorous laugh, I taunted the wizard.

"You seem like a very knowledgeable fellow... ever heard of Tai boxing?"

[Xos]

"I've heard of Chi Boxing. Back home there was an Ancient order of monks, that used their powers in conjuction with the Martial arts." xos said as he hopped over the kick. He seemed a million miles away as his eyes seemed to glow. He lashed out with his hand at lightning speeds, using his abnormally long finger nails to slash at Josh. Of course, they were just ordinary finger nails, and not actual claws like he supposed them to be.

He snapped back to attention.
"Anyways, when they punch you, they don't just use their strength, they also use the power of magic to enhance it. Some use Lightning, some use fire, like what I was doing ealier, theres all sorts of methods, but the fighting style is Kung Fuish. The Grand master, Lord Abo, is the only one capable of using The energy Punch. Its an unavoidable attack, unless you teleport. Its hard to escape a small scale Thermo-Nuclear Blast. And, yeah, it would be about the size of this room." Xos said.

He looked at his hands, curled int claws pointed outwards, crossed infront of his body, like he was using some hidden form of fighting. A look of confusion crossed his face and his arms dropped to his sides.

"What the hell was i doing? what was I talking about? I remember a kick and jumping, but after that, nothing. my head hurts." Xos said.

Secretly, He made a small throwing star in his hand, and whipped his arm up, throwing it as he did so.

If Xos ever actually developed a fighting style, the world would be in serious trouble.

[Breaker]

Xos' agility surprised me, but I knew in the end his evasion of my kick would work for me.

As I retreated the wizard lashed out. My hands were already up, ready to defend, and it was a simple matter to raise my right hand and shadow box the blow. I had not accounted for his abnormally long fingernails though, which raked my forehead as his hand slid past. Pain lanced across my skin, showing up in the form of angry red scratch marks. I swiped my palm across the abrasions, and it came away with a faint tint of blood.

"Son of a bitch... it's like fighting a cat. A goddamn magical cat."

Continuing to spout what had begun to sound like garbled nonsense, Xos kept babbling, now talking about some sort of unbeatable martial artist. I realized that he was, again, trying to lull me into a false sense of security. I focused my peripheral vision as well as all my other senses on my surroundings. Keeping myself aware of all eight walls of the arena, as well as the possibility of a magical attack from above, spread my focus quite wide. The shuriken took me completely by surprise.

Normally, I would have evaded a throwing star easily. They are inaccurate weapons at the best of times, and fly fairly slowly by comparison to other projectiles. I hadn't even realized that Xos had any shurikens, though, and as the multi-pointed weapon left his hand, all I could do was throw both my arms up to cover my head. An instant later I grunted in pain, feeling the projectile pierce my left tricep. I decided to leave it there, not wanting to risk the unnecessary blood loss. The weapon's small size and lack of weight had stopped it from going in deep, but it caused enough pain that even keeping my left arm up to defend was difficult. "It's time to end this." I told myself, and once more flowed towards Xos, my battle plan coming to a close.

As soon as I was within striking distance, I once more drew back my right leg, a perfect mimic of my previous two attacks. For the third time I prepared to kick out, and for the third time my leg snapped forward at top speed. This time, however, it stopped short.

Rather than kicking at Xos' leg, I kicked the ground, stomping down and transferring all of my weight onto my right leg. As I did so I twisted my right hip forward, and rotated to the right at both my waist and ribcage. All this added power to the punch which exploded forward. My undamaged right arm shot forwards, fist clenched and knuckles aimed for the wizard's jaw. It was a quick punch, thrown with nearly my entire body weight behind it. My father used to tell me that if I wanted to knock someone out, bang them on the chin. I was following his advice, but rather than knocking Xos out, I was going to take his head clean off.



((Note: That last is a hyperbole. Josh doesn't have enough power to knock someone's head off.))

[Xos]

BAM! the punch hit cleanly and pain rocked through Xos's head as he blacked out while falling down.

Josh could see Xos's skin physicly altering itself to look like Dragonscale.
It wasn't real Dragonscale of course, not yet, it just looked like it.

It faded back to normal skin, and Xos was still out like a light. He wasn't dead, but he would not be awake for quite some time. Clearly, this fight was over.

[Breaker]

Adrenaline pulsed throughout my sweating, exhausted body like a separate living creature trying desperately to break free from an undersized cage. Every primal and trained instinct in my being urged me to dive forwards, to kill the felled wizard. "Once your opponent goes down, you make sure he stays down." That rule had been stamped into the very pattern of my DNA since a young age. Whether it was my father teaching me how to defeat playground bullies or my teachers at University, or the trainers who had taught me to be a Special Agent. The rule remained the same: Unless you've got a referee, the fights not over 'till you say it is. I suppressed all the teaching then, staying frozen on the spot until the murderous passion had left my mind. "He's your student, not your enemy," I reminded myself. I walked the few steps to where Xos lay and bent to pick him up.

"Aaaargh!"

A deep chested cry ripped from my throat as pain shot through my upper arm and left side. I stood for several seconds with my hands on my knees, breathing hard, before examining the damage. I had forgotten about the shuriken embedded in my left tricep. When I bent to help Xos, it had sliced across my ribcage. Wincing and holding the arm far out from my body, I walked to the book shelf and retrieved my first aid kit. Kneeling beside the coffee table, I applied a quick dressing to my side, then, wincing slightly, yanked the throwing star out. Blood began to flow instantly, and I hastily wrapped a thick layer of gauze around the wound. "That ought to hold for now." It would probably need sewing, or Healing, at some point, but that could wait. Leaving the bloody shuriken, I went to the door and spun the dial until I heard a soft 'click' and the double doors swung open. Hot air poured in, giving hail to the powerful sun which was still almost directly overhead.

I took a few steps outside, making my way to a large wooden rain barrel. A small ladle floated within, and I picked it up, taking a quick drink before filling the ladle and heading back to Xos. A couple months ago I might have balked at the idea of drinking from a rain barrel; now it seemed like a common practice. I was adjusting to the ways of Althanas.

Back inside the arena, I knelt on the padded floor next to Xos' prone form, and sprinkled water on his face. The hot afternoon sun beat down on my neck and shoulders, reminding me how exhausted I was. "Nothing against Xos, but I hope he leaves right away... I need to get some rest."

[Xos]

Instead of waking up he bagen to pulsate and glow. Muscles were rippling underneath his skin, contracting and expanding. His mouth was slightly open, and Joshua could see Xos's Teeth becoming sharper and more jagged. But then they went back to normal, retaining only trace amounts of their sharp jaggedness. His nails seemed as sharp claws for a moment, and his shoulder blades were hyperactive. His skin became scaled, like a snakes, it looked and felt like snake skin for a small amount of time, but went back to normal. He groaned and rolled over, getting slowly to his feet.

While he was on his hands and feet he looked a Josh, and looked almost exactly like a creature about to strike, but as he got to his feet, that image went away. He looked around the Gym style Pagoda for his staff, and hobbled over to retrieve it.

He looked at Josh leaning upon his staff and asked him one simple question.
"Any ideas on how to improve?" he asked.

[Breaker]

For an instant, it seemed like the battle would resume. The look Xos was giving me was violent, animalistic. Combined with the odd changes which had come over his body just before he awakened, I began to wonder just what the wizard was up to. He did not seem to have noticed the temporary growth of scales, teeth and claws however, and limped over to the now open doors where his staff still lay. I watched him cautiously, a dangerous respect dancing in my eyes.

"Keep working your magic Xos, you seem to have a real talent for it. The one thing I can suggest is improving your attacking style. That shuriken you threw at me, for example. It was a neat trick, but I think a fireball would have been more practical. Stick to what you can do well, and you will start winning more often."

I felt exhausted from the mini speech, and gave a nod to the wizard before trudging to one of the recliners and sitting down, gingerly rubbing my bandaged arm. I hoped Xos would take the nod as a dismissal, for at the moment all I wanted to do was rest. I unwound the gauze on my arm part way, and saw that blood had soaked through most of it, but seemed to have stopped flowing. "Well, that's good. I'll have to see about getting it Healed later." It was a long walk to the Pagoda headquarters, where several monks well versed in the magical healing arts resided. Perhaps I would make the trip that night or the next morning.

Placing my large feet firmly on the floor, I leaned back, feeling the reclining mechanism shift beneath me. I let out a sigh of comfort, paused to remove my nunchaku from the back of my belt and place it on the table, then closed my eyes and breathed deeply. I wanted a quick cat nap, before anything else. I listened to the sounds of my arena, and the wilderness outside. Soon, they would lull me to sleep.

[Xos]

Xos Nodded, his body aching and sore, he could see his friend simply wanted to rest in peace, and that, Xos could oblige.

"After a time, we will meet again. I may not be skilled in Prophesy, but this I can forsee. How we will meet, I cannot be sure, but meet we will. Goodbye, for now." Xos said. He hobbled out of the Arena, his staff clacking on the floor.

After a trip to the Pagoda healers, Xos left the Pagoda, going where, he knew not.

[Skie and Avery]

Xos is red
016573 is blue

Story

Continuity:
3 - You gave me why he was there, but you left so many unanswered questions. How did your mirror self get into this world to face you? A question from your earlier thread still sticks with me. I have no idea how he can be descended from dragons. Big ol' scaly creature, little bitty human? The reproductive options are confusing and a little disturbing. You have to give your readers more. I believe, in the last thread I judged, I told you this. You cannot assume that they know everything that's going on in your mind. You have to treat each and every thread like it were it's own stand alone story.

5 - While I did appreciate the rundown of their last encounter, which was really the most I needed to know, there was still alot of unanswered questions that greatly impeded the enjoyment of this thread. How does Josh know about Gauss tech? Was he from Earth? If so, how'd he get to Althanas?

Setting:
4 - The use of this arena was dissappointing. Not only did you have tons of weaponry at your disposal, but you had the perfect aerial platform for attack, as well as a huge bookshelf. As my favorite ex-avatar went, "People are dumb, throw books at them." =P

3 - Also, not describing it in the first post hurt this score, because the purpose of the introduction is to set the scene. Pairing that with the shopping list approach to the description was devastating. This is your arena! Come on. This came from your mind. Next time, use it as a force of nature to it's full advantage.

Pacing:
4 - This was a battle. Too much dialogue, not enough descriptive action. It made the battle sluggish and drawn out far beyond what it should have been.

5 - I even found the same problem from you, drawing out the action. You don't need to pause between every attack for insight and conversation.

Character

Dialogue:
3 - Your character is chatty, and while there's nothing wrong with that in general, this was a fight. Even beyond the fact that he talked more than seemed believable for battle, the way he speaks just doesn't seem real. There's little personality to it, almost as if he's a walking textbook. I don't mean that in the way he sounds like a scholar, because I realize he was. I mean that if I were to watch a movie with this dialogue, I wouldn't be able to get into it. Even with a clipped, intelligent tone, you need more flow to the words.

5 - The same to you. Nothing your character said was memorable, nothing let me really see who he was. The tone was formal, and I don't know a single 22 year old male, well educated or not, who doesn't use some sort of slang or relaxed grammar in their speech. Dialogue needs to be filled with character, not just a means for IC communication.

Action:
2 - Whoa, we have some problems here, mate. Your character talks more than a preteen girl with her own cell phone. On crack. Okay? Think about what's going on. You're not going to be able to recite the Gettysburg Address while you dodge blows and jump over feet and such. ESPECIALLY for a character without alot of physical power. Actions speak louder than words. Always remember that. Now, we go to spells. First, your little H2O joke? Not cool. In your profile, you aren't supposed to be able to form more than one fireball atom at a time, and I believe you aren't supposed to be able to choose which ones appear. Here, you choose three and link them together with fiery lines. Even if, through quests, he'd learned to do the lines, and to choose what atom appears, it should only have been one. Even in non-combat situations, stick to the limitations of your profile. There's a reason they exist. Then come the boots with the light platforms. I couldn't find any mention of them in your profile at all. If they'd been quested for or purchased, a link in your signature would have been greatly appreciated so that I could glance and see that you did in fact come by this item for that use.

4

Persona:
5 - All I can really say is at least Xos is making sense in this thread.

6 - This really seems to be a roll that suits your character. You played him solidly through the whole thread, and it's good to see such a strong grasp of the character.

Writing Style

Mechanics:
3 - You are going to have to learn to slow down. For instance, the use of opponet instead of opponent was particularly headache-inducing. These small errors are a bother to read, and detract from the overall story.

6

Technique:
2 - Brevity works both ways. I'm glad you don't go on and on about things that have nothing to do with the thread, but at the same time, there is no substance to your work. You have to make your readers picture a scene. You have to make them feel what your character is feeling. You can't just toss up actions and dialogue and expect for it to keep a person's interest for long. You're writing a story, not a script.

4 - More emotion is needed. Your writing is cold and methodical, and while sometimes that is a great tool, here it does nothing to serve the character. Also, the flashback scene gave me a problem. While, yes, it did explain in great detail how Joshua knew Xos would attack his head, a large scene like that in the middle of an attack does nothing but slow down the action, lessening the impact of the entire thing.

Clarity:
5 - You're improving here, but there were some things that bugged me here. You can't hide a staff under a cloak and not have it impede the person somehow in movement. I was just as confused as Joshua was when you suddenly pulled it out. Little details are the most important. You cannot be more OCD when it comes to them. Please, for the love of god, start thinking about these things, start thinking about how someone outside of your head is going to see and react to the things you are writing.

7

Wild Card:
3 - Most young men have no idea what to do with their staves, alas.

4

Totals:
34
49

Winner - 016573

016573 receives 500 EXP and 577 GP
Xos receives 100 EXP and 102 GP

[Letho]

EXP/GP added! Numbers Guy, welcome to the next level.