Artifex versus Autumn - Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon

[Artifex Felicis]

A gentle hand had awoken the cat boy from his sleep that day. He was curled into a smaller ball of fur, with a woolen blanket over him in the middle of his arena. The floor was of hard wood, but comfortable and warm to the touch. He himself was waking slowly, the blanket already pulled from over him and stuffed into a side closet so it would not be in the way of the fight. A cup of a steaming liquid awaited him before his own furniture, a comfortable and effective hammock. He took up the cup, sipping the delicious drink.

A couple of minutes of groaning later, the cat boy was sitting on the hammock at the end of the room. The only real entrance was some fifty feet away and where the challenger would enter. He liked his room a lot. A fifty by fifty block of a room with an open ceiling to allow the sun and elements in. Nothing to hide behind and nothing that could give someone an advantage aside form the wall he was closest to.

The wall that was behind his back held the only decorations in the somewhat bland room. There were several weapons, and all of them would turn a dull blade to paper. There were there to help enforce Leon's position as a teacher. Also, it was so that way he didn't accidentally kill anyone through a misplaced strike. Not that it mattered much. He favored the smaller blunt tonfa however.

The same tonfa was currently in one of Leon's hands as he twirled it around, finishing most of his drink as he did so. It was his first real battle as a master in the Dajas Pagoda, against someone known as Autumn. He heard that they were one of the first challengers to climb their way into the Dajas Pagoda. It was his every intention to stop them quickly and have a fun time doing so.

His hair was in tufts and messy, though out of his eyes. Leon yawned and purred in anticipation of the little battle. He thought he cut a somewhat impressive figure. There wasn't much else in the room to look at aside from the dulled weapons or the cat boy himself. Tails swishing, he closed his eyes, leaning back and resting his back against the hardwood wall. A moment later he was asleep, tonfa and tea cup resting on his lap.

((Have at ye.))

[Autumn]

Staring at the closed door before her, Autumn prepared herself to walk through.

She had come a great distance, all the way from the kingdom of Alerar, to battle in the Dajas Pagoda. The journey would have taken several months if not for the high political status of her father. He had managed to arrange for one of Alerar's fabled flying machines-- a zeppelin, as it happened-- to drop her off. Originally she had been scheduled to battle one of the Warriors, a mancer by the name of Luc Kraus. The mage had withdrawn from the duel at the last minute, however, and the Pagoda's organizers had offered Autumn the oppurtunity to move up a notch, to challenge a Master. Impatient and angry about the delay, she had readily accepted.

Now, the drow princess could not stop the nagging thoughts which told her she was in over her head. Her reason for coming to Dajas Pagoda was to prove herself to her family. They treated her like an infant, rarely allowing her to leave the manor, her father expecting her to be content for years with nothing but lessons, lessons, and more lessons. Finally, she had convinced him that her training was becoming one-dimensional, and begged for a chance to study abroad. After a little research, her father had decided; if she could defeat one of the legendary Masters of Dajas Pagoda, she could choose where to study. So with great longing and hope, his daughter had journeyed to the island nation Scara Brae, ready for the duel of her life.

Normally Autumn was confident in her abilities, but as she neared the combat arena doubts had begun popping into her mind like unwelcome visitors, puncturing her confidence before vanishing, soon replaced by others.

You're too young, your father was right! Your guts will decorate the inside of this arena, and if the monks of Scara Brae manage to revive you, you will live in shame with nothing but your studies to keep you company!

The littany of her potential failings stretched on and on in her mind until she could not take it anymore. Breathing hard, Autumn burst through the door, and stopped dead.

My opponent is a CAT?

She had heard of nekos, but had never seen one. Fast asleep against the far wall, this particular specimen looked about as dangerous as a newborn kitten. As it so often did, Autumn's anger erupted, the color of her olive cheeks darkening, the liquid pools of blue that were her eyes turning to ice. The room was as unimpressive as its inhabitant; a hammock, a few weak looking weapons, and no ceiling. The elf shook her head in disgust and considered turning around and leaving.

No... I will stay and prove myself. Unless this... creature... has some trick up his sleeve, my father's cooperation is as good as won.

The decision to stay did nothing to calm her anger; instead it catalyzed it. Placing both hands on the door, Autumn slammed it shut as hard as she could, then turned to face the cat boy, arms crossed over her breasts, a look of incredible impatience adorning her elegant features.

If the noise does not awaken that stupid feline, I shall cut his throat in his sleep!

[Artifex Felicis]

The loud slam of the wooden door registered and echoed through the room until it escaped into the open air. It served well enough to wake the cat boy, who groaned again. He sat up, a careful hand making sure the tea cup did not spill. His eyes were screwed shut and curses about the doorway were flying from his lips as he realized he had fallen asleep again.

A single blue eye opened, revealing a blurry picture of his arena and something new. The eye closed, and he opened the other to focus in on what looked like a girl. After a moment of study, his face widened into a mischievous, if sleepy, grin. His legs found the floor and supported his body steadily. He set the tonfa down safely enough, removing his jacket and shirt for the girl. Even just woken up, there was nothing that would warrant needing the armor. Speed needed to be matched with speed. It gave a more interesting fight at least. It was no fun when someone hits the same hidden armor plate several times and doesn't learn to dodge.

His somewhat baggy pants trailed a little, though they were short enough to reveal his feet at each step. No claw was extended, not anything that would even be considered dangerous. He stopped after several strides, eyes awake and gleaming. The girl was interesting. He liked elves on a general principal, though couldn't suffer some of them. The girl was pretty in that same way all elves are and seemed to have a spine. Both were things the cat boy respected well.

"Welcome to the Master tier of the Dajas Pagoda. I am Leon," he spoke in a clear voice. He spread his arms wide, putting a leg back and bowing before the girl with the wide grin on his face, His two tails swished with each other slowly behind him. He rose back up over the extravagant bow. He ignored her annoyed expression, purring for a moment before controlling his own body. The warm sun felt good on his body. "Sorry for being asleep at first. And who might my student be before we battle?"

[Autumn]

Standing upright and alert, the neko was far more impressive than he had been before. The cat boy's useful muscles and charming demeanor did little to mollify the Aleraran elf, however. Once her anger got underway, there was little one could do to stop it. Despite this, she controlled her irriation with a firm hand. However strange the creature before her may seem, he was a Master of Dajas Pagoda, and this meant two things: one, he must be a fearsome warrior, and two, the correct etiquette was required.

"My name is Autumn Horizon, good Master of the Pagoda."

Autumn's right foot crossed behind her left as she bent at the knees, giving Leon a curtsy worthy of a King's ballroom. The gesture looked odd in the drab, spacious arena, especially considering her garb. Normally for such an act of deference the princess would have been wearing a dress with full skirts, which she would have spread wide. Her tight-fitting black pants and blouse were unfullfilling in this area, so instead she let her hands hang down beside her legs. Her head inclined slightly, the movement carefully calculated. For Royalty, she would have bowed fully; the nod she gave Leon showed respect to an equal, or slightly upper noble. Considering the anger in her mind, it was quite generous.

It is time to see if this creature deserves his title.

As the sun cast an odd, deformed shadow over Autumn's inclined form, her right hand, pressed against her leg, snaked down to her ankle and snatched the throwing spike sheathed there. Finishing the curtsy, she straightened up, the spike inverted and pressed against her wrist, concealed. The willowy princess tossed her head once, deep brown hair shining in the daylight. It was a distraction; she wanted to draw the neko's attention away from her hands. A small smile that never quite reached her eyes crossed the full, rosy lips.

"With your permission Sir, may we begin?"

She did not wait for an answer. In a quick, well-rehearsed motion the elf's arm shot out, throwing the spike hard, and accurate. Like a magnet drawn to a lode stone it flew, glistening iron tip aimed for Leon's chest, red tassel streamlined behind, ensuring true flight. The young warrior's body snapped into a ready position, knees bent, arms set to defend.

The battle had begun.

[Artifex Felicis]

The curtsy was well done, refined by years of good upbringing. It was a rather easy thing to spot for someone who hardly ever set foot near royalty. The cat boy was a down to earth person, and the most royal treatment he ever got was from performing a deed in the elven lands some time ago. The curtsies he normally saw were from singing girls in a tavern or actors in a play. They were far rougher, and usually showed a great deal of thanks. It was almost startling how different the calculated pose was from one done on the spur of the moment.

His eyes watched her carefully, his entire body coiled like a spring. There were a few tried and true rules of fighting to win. The most important was to always fight dirty. Many a warrior had been run through by a dirty opponent because he believed honor held for all. When a fighter got it into his mind that his opponent will lie, cheat, steal and back stab to win, many of their surprises would be foreseen.

His eyes trailed down her figure as she began to rise from the curtsy. The knife in her hands flew well, but the cat boy started moving before it ever left her hand. He turned and bent back, watching as the deadly weapon sailed past him and clattered on the hard floor behind him. He rose back up, the same wide smile hardly touched or wavered.

"Whenever you're ready girl," Leon replied simply. He settled down into his own stance as well. He was unarmed in the conventional sense, but that was easily remedied. Long, wicked claws slide slowly from the ends of his paws. The didn't reflect well in the light, but their edge was keen all the same. He held his ground for a moment, watching her closely. She was slim, but fit. He stepped forward quickly for the average man, yet still slow to his conditioned body. He pivoted to kick at the girl's chest in a wide, sweeping motion.

[Karuka]

Autumn has not posted in ten days, this match is declared forfeit to Artifex Felicis.