Closed [Fighter's pit] One mercenary, One knight. Trouble time!

[Revy Hiroe]

The woman couldn't really keep up with the guy's introduction. To her it sounded like a whole lot of gibberish. It didn't help that she wasn't interested in it either. No she was more interested in his skill with the weapon. It seemed that he was at least experienced with it, yet she didn't doubt that she'd win. After all, she had the goddess of war and victory backing her up. "Well Markus Andres, Sergeant knight of the.... whatever company.... ugh..... whatever. I ain't repeating that.", she started spiteful, but as she tried to remember what he had said exactly, the tone changed to a little bit troubled. "If you beat me, I'll give you my name. Deal? Well, even if you don't accept, you ain't getting it before you beat me.", she then continued. Overconfident as always, the woman took her position facing the knight. Before she even went into her stance, she mumbled a small prayer to Myri as she let her gnosis flow throughout her body. She was serious, deadly serious. She didn't intend to lose to some weak knight. Taking her own stance, left foot leading while hanging slightly back on her right, shield in front of her and weapon raised high with the tip pointing at her opponent, she said: "You get the first move, gimme yer' worst." Her sunberthian accent trickled into her speech, because she didn't pay attention to it, but more on her opponent.

[Markus Andres]

Markus stared at the woman when she spoke. Hardly believing his ears. Why would he care about her name? The prospect of getting her name would not make him fight any harder. It was just the name of a disrespectful delinquent who had no idea what the knights had done for her. It infuriated him beyond reason. Then the woman had the nerve to retort to his obvious invitation to start the combat with an invitation of her own. The sergeant was much too annoyed at this point to let such a minor thing add to the annoyance. Let their differences be settled on the field of battle. For once in a long time, Markus had no intention of holding back from the start like he usually did. To test the mettle of the other person. Their abilities. This woman would bite the ground as soon as possible.

Patience Markus. Do not let her cloud your judgement. Establish a simple plan. Markus cooled himself down the best he could. The appearance of ser Urisu had been a fortunate one. Without him Markus might have beaten this woman to a pulp for her insolence. Markus rolled his shoulders and glared directly at the target in front of him.

"Wysar grant me the discipline not to tear her in half." Unusual prayer before combat. He stepped closer. Bolstered by confidence his approach was far from picture perfect, but that was an illusion, a feint, designed to try and make her lunge for him and open her defence up for him to tear apart. Shield hung a little loose on his left arm. The battle he had sought was here, but he was too riled up at the moment to begin enjoying it just yet and he was firmly convinced it would be over too soon. His right foot slid to a halt. Left leg leading, shield held strong before him. Within range and assuming the woman had not lunged at him, his blade would slash down at her from the high guard. His favourite opening attack in the world when it came to actual combat.

For it was always just a feint. A simple one at that. It would appear the blade was coming down on the woman, but all the while Markus drew his arm back. Anyone observant enough would notice it, but it would not remain pulled back for long. The overhead chop turned into a quick straight forward thrust. Aimed at slipping into the gap that the overhead chop usually created when the defender raised their shield to block the initial attack.

[Revy Hiroe]

The woman simply kept her stance, as she saw the knight step in. Even though she was rather annoyed with him, in a battle she always had to keep her head cool. She didn't want to repeat what had happened back when she challenged Xymal the second time. Her arm was still stiff from that blow. Most likely it wasn't going to heal any time soon, but she could only hope. As she saw Markus attack, her hopes of a good fight seemed to be shattered. How could he use such an obvious feint? Was that guy new to fighting? Oh dear Myri, why did the knights let such kids join? Because she saw that feint so soon, she had already made her mind up about how she was going to counter, so she could allow herself for some smack talk. "Thanks for this boring fight. If you are only able to hide your attacks to that extent, this won't even serve as a proper warm up", she said obviously disappointed. And then she set in her own counter the moment he started his thrust. A quick sidestep to her right and then she swung out her shield in an attempt to hit Markus' sword. She followed this up immediately with a wide thrust aimed to hit his armpit. Her plan was to go around the shield and straight into the armpit. An attack like that would surely make him waver. Or at least that was the plan. She hadn't really thought of anything else yet, so if she had to react to something it would be more on instinct then on actual planning.

[Markus Andres]

Quick.

It was rare that Markus' smile turned from one of utter disgust to one of delight so quickly. The woman could move swiftly in the armour. Seen through his obvious feint and acted accordingly. If she could keep up that display for only a single chime, she might have redeemed herself in his eyes. Until then, Markus had a battle to win. He could feel his blade get struck by her shield. Felt the impact coil up his arm. Didn't matter. He could retrieve his right arm soon enough in any case. Wasn't a major setback. Only an opportunity. The taunt barely registered, he was one of those who did not often engage in conversation when he fought. Only a distraction from the truly important thing. Besides, she spoke only what a thousand other people had said.

Markus was a firm believer of the shield being a great offensive weapon as well as the ultimate defensive weapon. Markus was not a defensive fighter in any case. The right arm might be retrieved, but for now he had to recover from the initial mistake of vastly underestimating the woman. Markus did not waver, he attacked. Did notice the preciseness of her thrust. The display with the shield was lacklustre, but the sword. That she knew how to use.

His shield moved to not block the longsword, but to take it in the side. Twisting his torso to match the shield. Knocked her blade to his left, while getting his own body to safety behind the shield. Simple manoeuvre. Excellent for Markus who loved to attack. His defensive front taken care of, while her main offensive weapon knocked aside. He would not allow her to swing it back in, as he would lunge forward. Left foot twisting on the ground to face her. Right foot pressing against the ground. Use the shield as a battering ram of sorts. She had her blade on his left. Shield edge would scrape against her sword and he would ram her. Shove her backwards using his superior bulk and strength to overpower her and force her off balance. This gave the added advantage that he now had his blade by his side again. Ready to strike.

[Revy Hiroe]

Revy was slightly caught off guard by the counter from the knight. She hadn't expected him to be this good. She had made a mistake, a grave one at that. She underestimated him. Yet she wasn't angry about this, because it meant that the fight would be that much more interesting. Of course she wasn't going to have that guy have his way. No, she had to counter it in a way. Almost instantly did she change the direction of her attack. Instead of going for his armpit and having her main arm knocked away, she turned the tip towards the shield. The wooden weapon groaned under the impact, but at least she hadn't had to recover from that. Now she had to prepare for that guy's next move. Luckily for her, his attack was rather.. predictable. She was able to predict it, because she would've done the same if she was in the same situation. So instead of taking the blow, she pushed off with her leading foot, creating some distance between the two. How could she win this? And how could she do it in the most humiliating way? Well, one way was to batter his knees until they buckled and then start working on knocking him out. Another way, if he weren't so well armored, was to just put a few hits into his.... groin. So far the men that she hit there never seemed to stay standing for long. But due to him wearing that plate, it was nearly impossible. She started to circle the guy, keeping a close watch on his shoulders, knees and feet. For now she was out of his reach unless he leaped at her. It gave her some time to think and assess the situation. "His shield is going to be a problem. Perhaps I would do well to numb that arm first, then work on his joints. Or I could numb it and go straight for the throat. Hmm...", she thought to herself. "Maybe I should drop a few armor pieces, make myself lighter... Nah, let's keep that for later. Can always drop em easily if I want" Then suddenly she took a few steps forward, coming just within reach of Markus before taking a jump back again. It was just to test his reaction skill and to see if he was able to predict what was a feint or not. She had a lot of things she had to learn about him, before she could come up with a surefire plan, or so she thought at least.

[Markus Andres]

Markus didn't particularly worry about the change of direction in her sword. He was safe behind the shield either way. But she did react quicker than he expected. Getting her entire body out of reach before he pummelled her to the ground with the shield. It brought a curl to his lips. But it soon waned as he stared at the woman through the slits in the helmet. She was obviously judging him, plotting a way to take him down. Though for now, he was just conserving his energy. Last he fought someone very talented, he had won on Markus simply bottoming out on stamina. Never had he been so exhausted in his life as that battle. Given everything. Today, it was late, colder, no Syna to bathe him in heat. Today his muscles would last longer. The fire in his lungs take longer to take effect. This woman was going to be a lot of fun. Whether she knew it or not.

The woman began to circle him. He kept up with her. Unlike him, she seemed to be a very defensive fighter. Markus used this time to observe her in return. More athletic than him. Quicker with the body, but that he had expected. Not as strong. Also to be expected. Her weakness, he deemed, would be the shield. Keeping the strikes varied and quick on her shield side would be his way to victory. It was a simple tactical analysis and it was open for changes. For the fight had not lasted long enough to give a more in depth analysis. Only thing he could say for sure... She was a Hai of a lot better with the longsword than with a glaive. Markus kept the shield between the two. Giving her less of a view of his body. Didn't want her to get any clever ideas. To judge any ideas he was forming himself. To be honest, the knight was getting a little bored with the current stand still. Razkar had kept the fighting fluid and the knight had been on his toes the entire fight. If this unknown woman did not soon engage again, he would have to go on the offensive again.

She moved forward. Markus only reaction was tensing his left arm to withstand any blow that would come from the woman. Blade did not descend to intercept her. But the woman surprised him. Jumping back outside range again. Markus raised himself to his full height and looked at the woman with a disapproving look as his brows furrowed, of course she could not see that because of the helmet. He broke his own idea of not talking during a fight.

"I'm sorry~ is this some weird mating ritual to you? Or are we sparring?" She had only just gotten in his good grazes with her surprising display of martial ability and then she squandered it by being so defensive. It would appear Markus would have to start the fight again. No fancy tricks this time. He would advance towards her, keep the shield side towards her and keep the sword raised in a high guard. When in range, he would slash down at her in a simple diagonal slash towards her left shoulder/neck. Test if he was correct about her ability with the shield. Though confident as he attacked, he was a little wary about her speed. Keeping the shield ready to counter attack should she do something funny.

[Revy Hiroe]

The woman didn't see the man do anything at all when she did her quick jest. Well, that could mean two things. A: he was confident enough that he could stop her with that shield, or B: he didn't have the reaction to counter her. Most likely it was option A, deducting this from how he reacted to her sudden thrust for his armpit. That would make the fight all the more harder yet at the same time more fun. She couldn't help but grin when he started to rise, as it left an opening. She didn't listen to his words, but she simply stepped in range as fast as she could. He reacted by a diagonal slash, but it was just far too obvious. Being raised in Sunberth had it's advantages, one of them being that you had to fight as deceitful as possible if you wanted to win. So far this knight's style had been straightforward, very straightforward. Did he really want to win, or did he not know of another style? Oh well, it didn't matter. She avoided his slash by ducking under it, dropping to her lower left. She then quickly lashed out at his exposed hip, but her weapon found his shield obstructing the path. That was a problem. Perhaps she should... yes, that would be great. She was going to do something he would absolutely not expect at all. If she failed, well.. she reckoned she was at least fast enough to avoid any major counter attacks, if not she would be in a whole heap of trouble. She dropped her sword, catching it with her leading foot, while quickly reaching out to the edge of that shield of his. If successful, she'd jank hard at it, letting go nearly immediately for a punch to his face. She followed this up by launching her sword back up into the air, catching it in the process, and slash at his throat while he was still recovering. Then she'd back off again.

[Markus Andres]

So similar. The knight noted.

Speed was on her side. Markus knew how to battle speed. With conservation of movement. Avoid any over the top movements that left him stranded like a turtle on its back. But although she was quick, Markus had seen Razkar do things that would have blown his mind prior to meeting him. This woman, fought with a similar style. Especially when she ducked under his right blow. The myrian had pulled the same trick, only quicker, more devastatingly. He was indeed prepared for such a manoeuvre. That did not mean he was not going to have to act swiftly. His torso swung to follow the woman. Right foot sliding back as she moved closer. Much closer than he liked. But he could adapt. Shield moving in to block any attacks that might come rising at him. Markus did not bother to keep the response measured. Her weapon had to be knocked away so he punched the shield in her direction. Might be able to catch the sword hard enough to knock it from her grasp. Or one of the teeth could deflect it in a unforeseen direction. Perhaps into herself and cause insignificant damage, but still keep her on edge and wary of such drastic moves. Make her doubt her own abilities.

To his surprise the woman dropped her blade low. Very low. Markus cared not, the shield would still intercept the blade. Then he struck something. Too soft to be the blade. To his further surprise he saw her fingers wrap around the shield. It only made him punch all the harder. Teethed edges might bite into her palm. Though the knight would not finish there, the woman had gotten really close and his shield was a phenomenally great weapon in close range. But so was his blade. Or rather, the other end of the blade.

The right hand had begun to cease the swing when he noticed she ducked below. Knowing that the woman would undoubtedly capitalize on the exposed right side. The muscles up along the arm tightened and bulged. He whipped his arm down. Striking hard with the pommel of the blade in a simple but vicious blow. Mainly designed to rattle her brain through the armour. Perhaps even do a little damage and get the woman away from Markus. Didn't like having her that close to him. He fought at a range for a reason.

[Revy Hiroe]

Revy felt the teeth of the shield through her gauntlet, but she payed no heed to it. They weren't sharp enough to rip through the glove, they only gave an uncomfortable feeling. But because of the knight punching out with that shield, she couldn't finish her ploy. She couldn't punch him in the face like this. No now she quickly had to come up with a plan, find a way to turn this situation into her advantage. She didn't notice what Markus was doing with his weapon, but right now she knew that she wasn't going to have any benefit from her shield. So she simply abandoned it. Now she could use her left hand as well, change up that style of hers. A free hand to punch with, or to change her weapon to. It didn't take more then a few ticks for her to change her aproach completely. Instead of continueing her path to the guy's right side, and consequently closer to his blade. She dove to her left with a quick push from her leading foot. At the same time, she grabbed her sword that was still resting on her left foot. But unlike before, she now held it in her left hand, perfect for a quick stab to the guy's knee cap. Take out the joints and any fighter loses. It as something she noticed other better fighters, though she hated to admit this, do. As she dove to her right, she made sure to let go of that guy's shield. Only then did she notice a blow that had went for her head, missed her narrowly. If she had taken that, she would surely have had a terrible headache after this, but fortunately she didn't. Instead she now stabbed straight at the side of that guy's knee. Successful or not, she'd then continue trying to keep at his side, or if she saw an opening, get in his back from where she could target the back of the knee.

[Markus Andres]

The shield strike didn't have the intended numbing effect on the woman's hand. At least he didn't hear a sharp yell of pain as the edge hit her leather gloves. Though perhaps the woman was more accustomed to pain than he thought or the strike had been a fairly weak one. Though he doubted the latter. Markus heard a clatter from somewhere and to his surprised noticed that the woman had abandoned her shield. That or she had lost it in the middle of their skirmish. Though the act seemed deliberate. Though why she had done it he could not fathom. Not until he saw her left foot kick up the sword and once more he was impressed with how easily she handled the weapon wearing full armour. Tricks Markus would have a hard time replicating, even outside of fast paced combat.

Unorthodox - Markus was against a fighter who thought in completely different ways than he did. Foe he could not predict for her actions seemingly did not make sense until they were at their fruition. The woman dove further to his right. Avoiding his pommel strike by mere inches. Though he wasn't bothered too much by that, what he was bothered by was the fact that her left arm would be able to strike at him now. His elbow changed direction, stopped and began to work as the joint it was and swung the blade down as fast as he could. In a backhanded swing. The blade wooshed right by Markus' own shield. Slipping between him and the female warrior and catching her blade before it could connect to his knee joint. They always went for his knee joint. Ball, Razkar, this woman, Imass, thieves, bandits, everyone. Perhaps it was time he invested in better armour down there so they might be surprised when their attacks merely bounced off of the armour. Wishful thinking for a later date.

The knight had kept twisting his body and feet had slid across the ground to follow the woman as she moved. But Markus would need distance again and when he blocked the sword strike he found something much more important than distance. His right foot pivoted on the spot as the knight had a smirk develop on his lips. Left foot shoot out in a simple kick. Aimed directly at the woman's sword halfway down towards the hilt. She had stabbed at his knee and he had pushed the blade aside. Hopefully the woman could not recover fast enough to get the blade out of his way before he kicked it aside. If the woman had overextended so much that her left wrist was in reach, that that would be his target. Whether he hit it or not didn't matter much to the knight, it was only a small part of a larger movement. Keep the criminal woman on her toes at all times. For the moment his foot touched ground again and he restored his sense of balance. His entire upper body would twist to the right. Left arm viciously swing out in a simple punch. The shield would come in full force at whatever part of her was closest to him. Be it right shoulder, back of the head or even her back. Didn't matter much to Markus. Only that he hit her.