Sparring Amongst Stone (Imass)

by **Eridanus** on August 1st, 2012, 1:20 pm

His hits struck, but there was no room for early victory for the akalak was a sturdy warrior. Instantly, his subconscious registered a swing from the broadsword, and he brought his wrist up to deflect the blow.

Shields shimmered again as the blunt blade clanged against his forearm, and he winced again, his arm beginning to tremble in pain. In hindsight he probably should have ducked, but his muscle memory was too used to using unarmed against unarmed. Combine that with the instantaneous processing of information from Evantia, his body generally reacted too fast for his mind to adapt his movements, resulting in such a scenario.

The knight returned on the offensive, and he began backing away, his combat experience, keen observation and Wysar's gift acting in tandem to help him maintain a close distance, but far enough to barely dodge the swords as he edged backwards. His mind whirred to seek a new solution, a new form of attack, while he dodged blows in order to buy time.

When he saw an opening, he pushed off with his legs forward again, intending to use the momentum for a powerful shove in the chest followed by an uppercut. Unfortunately, even as he pushed off, his aura tinged uncomfortably, and his senses blared an alert, but he was in mid-air and he could not change course.

Imass directed a powerful swing downwards, and even while in mid-air the ethaefal could not do anything else but raise both arms in an X-like motion, both arms supporting each other as they caught the blade in between them at the forearms.

The blunt impact from the child of Wysar was strong enough to force the celestial being to his knees, and the shields on his knees shimmered as they absorbed the impact of suddenly being forced to the ground.

The pain from the moment overwhelming any knowledge that he might have received from Evantia, Eridanus could not respond even when the akalak continued with a counter attack, and he felt an iron grip under his arm pits as he felt himself being wrestled.

Cursing in his mind, he struggled, but of course an ethaefal was no match for an akalak's natural strength. The momentum and force from the manoeuvre pushed him backwards onto the ground, and as he fell he hurriedly grasped onto the djed strands within him.

Astral energy jumped throughout his body as he hastily directed strength to various specific muscle groups in order to control the manner of his fall, and even as he fell onto the ground with the akalak above him he directed strength to his legs as he curled them up.

Using the momentum of the fall, he converted it instead into a backwards roll, using his flux-enhanced legs to kick the akalak off as he pushed off in the opposite direction. Flux energy jumped upwards into his hands as he braced himself for the next forward roll as a result of his acrobatic move, making sure to use his palms and elbows to soften the impact of the fall by virtue of the shields on them.

As he landed in the forward roll, he swept his legs around, recovering quickly as he stood up, turning around to face the akalak with his arms settled into his typical unarmed stance. His mind began drawing from the network of djed strands within him, ready to provide the magical boost he needed to even out the battle.

by **Imass** on August 1st, 2012, 6:37 pm

Imass bull rushed Eridanus with all his might. Being that his goal was to use as much power as possible, he trusted his hips and stomach into the take down. It was all about leverage and Imass was undoubtedly going to win this battle. He felt the Ethereal buckle under his impossible Akalak strength. Using the kinetic energy, Imass soon found himself bringing his opponent to the floor.

Before the Knight even had a moment to process a thought, Eridanus was already forming a counter attack. Using the momentum already produced by Imass, the Ethereal was able to roll backwards and toss Imass. As Eridanus rolled, he used flux enhanced muscles to completely flip the heavily armored warrior.

The Akalak didn't even have a single moment to think. In a flash of a second his bulrush turned into him falling face first into the dirt. The vibrations from his armor shook his body. His face and eye was in pain, and so where his shoulders, knees, and chest. He even had the wind knocked out of him. Imass was not meant to go flying in the air. He was way too heavy for that.

He was seeing stars now and the laceration on his forehead was now bleeding a lot worse. There was a huge bump now where he had hit his face. The Akalak was seeing stars. Imass was not ready for such a counter attack from such a creature; the martial artist had never seen flux used before.

He stood up, but everything was blurry. The blue-skinned warrior was dazed and confused, but he would not stop yet. He could still fight. He was covered in sweat and was still trying to regain his breath before he attacked the blurry figure once again.

Imass grunted has he started swinging his broad sword haphazardly; he stabbed twice, slashed a couple of times from the left, and gave a few swings over his head. Imass swung with his shield as well. He continuously tried to swing the rim at Eridanus' face in between strikes.

Imass was exhausted.

The Knight was not as good a fighter as the Son of Leth, but the knight would show great fortitude.

by **Eridanus** on August 3rd, 2012, 9:12 am

It was obvious that the knight had sustained quite some injuries from their spar, and the worried ethaefal had quickly inspected them from a distance. As far as he knew, these were merely superficial wounds that he could get Nira'lia to heal, and therefore he was not too concerned.

Imass headed towards Eridanus with dedication, swinging his blade and shield in an unruly manner. Evantia tinged, and Eridanus dodged a few of them, bringing his forearm to bear to parry an incoming blade.

Except that he completely missed and the blade jabbed painfully into his ribs. The shield on the edge shimmered once again as it absorbed the impact, and it was the djed construct that prevented Eridanus from turning into ethaefal kebab. Still, having the equivalent of a metal rod driven hard into one's ribs was not a nice experience, and the air was knocked out of them, stumbling him back as he tried his best not to fall on his feet.

Scrambling back to dodge the further blows, his mind raced to discover why Evantia had failed him.

Intention.

Of course, Evantia sensed intention. In that disoriented state, Imass' grip on reality may not be as strong due to his disorientation. That meant that wherever the knight had been intending to attack may not be what happened in reality, and Eridanus realized that Wysar had not provided his gift as a crutch. It was meant to be used together with his combat experience and observation, rather than to shut off all senses and blindly rely on one.

Luckily I made this mistake here and not in real combat.

Humbled, he scrutinized the akalak more carefully, grasping the djed threads within his soul as he continued to dodge and strafe the armored warrior, seeking for an opening.

Upon that last shield bash, he dashed forward, flux energy jumping precariously to his feet as he leaped off the shield effortlessly, pushing his body into the air. While in mid-air, he bent downwards, bringing his upper torso downwards as if he was preparing for a dive into the ocean.

Flux streams jumped to his arms and upper torso as he redirected the astral energy, and he kicked off with his feet to provide that little boost, attempting to slam his elbow into the part where the neck and shoulder met. If he succeeded, it would be a powerful blow that would most likely knock the man out for a short while, but not enough to be fatal. That was what the shields on his elbows were for.

by **Imass** on August 4th, 2012, 4:11 am

Imass was winded now. He was breathing hard and cover in a glaze of sweat. He could feel the runnels of perspiration leak down his armpits. The pain from the bruises was getting to him now. His eyebrow was swollen and a long streak of blood dripped down his face. The expression of his mouth was neutral; he tried only to control his breathing.

The knight's face lit up brightly when he smashed Eridanus' rib. Even as a child, Imass always got happier when he was making progress in a spar. He would not stop though. He pushed his body and his mind. He swung and swung. He brought his sword down in a massive hack. He slashed sideways. He swung his shield again and again. He tried to smash his opponent with the rim, aiming at the neck and shoulders. Imass covered as much ground as possible. He kept his shoulder perpendicular to Eridanus.

With an onslaught of attacks, Eridanus had no chance to fight back. He did everything in his power to have an advantage. Although Imass did not have magic to enhance his attacks, he would use every damn trick in the book.

Another shield slam, but suddenly Eridanus had a change of heart. Dashing forward, the Son of Leth made a bold move and jumped off Imass' shield once more. Looking up in the air, Imass had no idea what was going on. Before he could even calculate or even comprehend what Eridanus was doing, the scholar was already nose diving at his neck.

Imass raised his shield in protest of Eridanus' attack, but it was too late. The Knight had gotten smashed in the shoulder in full force of the aerial attack.

The Akalak buckled. Tears of pain sweltered his face. He held his breath. If it wasn't for his armor the attack would have been deadly.

"Yahal!!" Imass gasped his failing breath. He couldn't even say a prayer. Hopefully that was enough to give him strength.

Although bleary-eyed and crushed by Eridanus, Imass would not give up; the Akalak's kept sparring until one passed out.

The Knight then made one final attempt to flip his hips and trap Eridanus. Imass aimed a tackle right at Son of Leth's own hips. He felt the pain of his shoulder colliding. He screamed again as he attempted to drop Eridanus under his three hundred pound frame.

by **Eridanus** on August 7th, 2012, 4:04 am

Eridanus grinned triumphantly when his elbow made contact with the akalak's flesh. Raising his brow in surprise at the utterance of his worshiped god, the ethaefal mentally made a note to compare notes later. However, he felt his body beginning to droop from the air, and knowing that if he landed stupidly like that in front of the akalak he was bound to get wrestled to the floor.

One did not simply out-wrestle an akalak. It was not even an option to begin with.

Flux streams channeled to his lower torso, particularly swarming his core, hips and thighs and with the added strength he kicked off in the air but away from the knight, his hands pushing off the warrior's armored shoulder for the extra momentum.

Pushing his arched back so as to slump it, his supernaturally-fueled leap caused him to fly with greater force than usual, forcing him to soften his fall with a tumble, his hands first hitting the ground before he rolled away from his opponent.

Warning bells flashed in his mind as Evantia sent a series of information to his brain, and he turned around quickly, already seeing Imass in mid-tackle. His tumble caused him to use up all the possible momentum that he might have, and it was too late to leap away.

Instead, he positioned himself for a grapple, and leaned forward, his boots digging into the ground for stability. Flux strands flowed upwards, fortifying his arms and his chest to give him the natural strength that he lacked, and he winced as the two of them clashed.

Even with magic aiding him, his muscles were being tested to their very limits as he tried his best to stay on even ground, much less overpower, the akalak, and he could tell that his injured opponent was trying the same as well. After several moments of give-and-take, with neither parties gaining ground but both losing energy rapidly, the celestial child could feel his arms going cold.

Dammit, if I don't stop now I may overgive.

It took all his willpower to stop himself indulging in this false display of power granted by flux, and he did so by chanting Wysar's name repeatedly in his mind. Wysar for Conviction, Wysar for Discipline.

"How about we stop now and call it a draw, eh?" The surreal creature gasped.

by **Imass** on August 15th, 2012, 5:22 pm

To Imass' surprise, Eridanus met his tackle head on and began to grapple with him. The Akalak had his arms around the mages' hips whilst the mage had his arms around the Knight's torso. Imass smirked even though he was completely out of breath. The Knight had all the leverage and the advantage in this situation, however for some reason Eridanus was able to stand his ground against the lumbering Imass. Although the warrior didn't know it, but the eth was actually using flux to brace himself against all odds. If it wasn't for the magic that strengthened the body, then the Knight would have completely overpowered Eridanus.

The two began to grapple and attempt to gain advantage on each other. Imass tried to move his arms up higher so he could bring his hips forward and flip the man, whilst Eridanus simply kept on the defensive. He kept moving his arm positioning so that Imass could not get full advantage. This went on for a minute or two before both men were completely void of any energy at all.

Finally to Imass' relief, the surreal creature called for a draw. The Akalak gladly accepted and let go of the man. The big blue guy then sat on the floor and tried to get his breath. Using his meditation techniques, Imass placed his hands on his hand and took deep breathes. In through his nose and out through his mouth. He tried to slow down his breathing and his heart rate. Regulation was the key to recovery. His body was sore as well, but it was a good sore; the blood was still pumping so it was almost an enjoyable feeling.

"That which doesn't kill thee, only makes thee stronger," Imass puffed, still gaining his air back, "Well done Good Ser Eridanus, Son of Leth! You are a challenging opponent, I commend thee!"

Waiting for a few more seconds to regain his breath, the Knight finally stood to his feet. He held his hand out to Eridanus in gesture of good will, "I have faith in thee now. Not only are thy an noble worshipers of Wysar, but you, Good Ser, are also a noble warrior and mage. I do not doubt that anymore. You must explain to me later your techniques – I be interested. You have gained my trust Eridanus, I hope I have done the same to you."

Friendship between warriors was born through the fires of combat. Words where secondary. Eridanus was now Imass' friend and ally.

by **Eridanus** on August 16th, 2012, 2:04 am

If Imass was relieved at Eridanus's call for a draw, the ethaefal was even more relieved for his soul was already tearing away at his muscles, and he would not be able to maintain the use of flux anymore. Upon which the abandonment of flux usage would lead to the akalak's superior strength and weight overwhelming the celestial child. It would not be very nice to be pinned under so many stones' worth of weight.

"Finally," He gasped when the two warriors withdrew from each other, and he instantly began to sit down, meditating just like the unranked knight. Seeking his own soul, he began inspecting the flow of his djed streams, troubleshooting the frenzied threads and redirecting them back to their correct places. It took some time, but the calmer state the meditation was bringing him to helped, and soon he managed to smoothen the flux fray.

When both warriors have regained their breaths, the son of Leth stood up, grasping the blue man's hand firmly in a warm gesture of appreciation and respect.

"Thank you for the spar, Ser Imass. It has been awhile since I fought an honorable warrior of your skill and chivalry. I am glad that I have the honor of having one such as you in the party to face the unknown in Sahova."

There would indeed be much to learn from fellow warriors, and more from one as zealous as Imass.

Fin.

by **Emblem** on August 31st, 2012, 7:33 pm

Congratulations!
You Get Glorious Experience!

Eridanus
Skills

Lores

Other Shenanigans: Nope

Imass
Skills

Lores

Other Shenanigans: Nope

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