2017-06-24: Preparation By Sword
- Log: Preparation By Sword
- Cast: Talise Gianfair, Tethelle Cirdian
- Where: Lacour
- Date: July 24, 2017
- Summary: Talise helps Tethelle prepare for the Tournament of Arms with a brisk sparring session.
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Everyone's talking about the coming Tournament of Arms. The buzz around town is palplable, and more than a few fighters are getting ready for it.
One of them is not Talise Gianfair. In fact, she hasn't even entered the tournament. That's reserved for someone else of her acquaintance.
However, that hasn't stopped her from acting as a sparring partner for various fighters in the area. She's not using Rastaban for this; she's left it behind along with her lute and even her usual mail and boots, trading them for a leather corset top, matching gloves and boots and a pair of shorts. In place of her usual weapon, she's using a more generic steel longsword, blunted for sparring purposes.
She'd sent an invitation out - and Tethelle will find her in an open space in the market square, sword in hand, going through a few basic katas with it as though to prepare herself. After a moment, though, she tosses her head and rakes a hand through her hair. She's bleached it to a pale, shocking blonde. It makes her look a little less like herself - enough to fool people who just look at the wanted posters.
She's grinning wolfishly. Her eyes are bright with anticipation.
<Pose Tracker> Tethelle Cirdian has posed.
Tethelle, unlike Talise, did indeed sign up for the Tournament of Arms. So far, nobody that she knows of is betting on her, because she's a complete unknown.
So when Talise invited her, she grinned and accepted. Why not? She'd give them a show. There are lingering thoughts that her rather esoteric fighting style isn't really meant to be used for acclaim, but she's also an eighteen-year-old and just as prone to showing off as any teenager. Plus, it's not like anyone will /mind/...
Tethelle arrives with what looks like her usual sword over her shoulder, not in the carrying strap. Talise will very quickly identify it as not actually Tethelle's original, now-broken sword; it's a sword-blank, an unfinished blade that's been hammered into the proper shape but never sharpened. Nor does it have the engravings around the pommel, though it does have the same shape of grip and pommel as her old blade.
Tethelle has actually had this for a long time. She's practiced with it for years. But practice is all it's good for; it has a flaw in the metal that makes it unsuitable for real combat. But practice against someone using blunted swords and not trying to kill, or when performing maneuvers solo? It's just fine for that.
"Looking good," Tethelle says as she strolls up, eyeing Talise's stance as if trying to analyze it. Which, in fact, she may very well be doing. Her own positioning - blade over her shoulder - gives little away.
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
There are some curious names on the list. One of them is Lady Chloe Alexandre. But it's definitely not Talise's naim. Nope, definitely not.
As Tethelle strolls up, Talise immediately identifies the differences between the woman's old sword and the one she's toting around right now. It looks blunted, just like hers. Perfect. "Tethelle," she calls out, sliding out of her practice kata with a wide grin and strolling over to greet the woman. Tethelle permitting, she'll do so by reaching out to take her roughly by the shoulders. It's not quite a hug but it's probably just as friendly. "Thanks! It's not my normal style but I figured I'd show these folks some of the flashy stuff."
So much for scouting her out early. Her eyes twinkle merrily as she takes a step back. "I saw you were signed up for the big tournament. I can't, myself, but I'll be rootin' for you. But I figured you'd want to get some practice in before the big event. And besides...." Here she rolls her shoulders before gesturing out into that open area in the square.
The taller woman winks, once. "I'm kind of curious to see what your style is. I know how people from Lunar fight but it seems pretty different here!"
<Pose Tracker> Tethelle Cirdian has posed.
Having heard the full story of Chloe zero times in her life, Tethelle does not make the connection between that name and Talise. Of course it's someone else! Of course.
Tethelle's response is to swing the sword off her shoulder so that Talise doesn't grab the sword, and clasp her wrist with her free hand. Just for a moment. "I can always use practice," she says, "and not many people have offered. I would like to spar with Claude, but the opportunity just hasn't been there. It's good to know someone in the crowd is thinking of me, though..."
This is a big city and Tethelle knows basically nobody in it. It's kind of ... not unpleasant, precisely, but it makes her a little off balance. She may have been in Adlehyde for some time, but large cities are still new to her.
Taking a step back, Tethelle returns to her on-the-shoulder resting position. "I do not believe my style is what you would think of as 'normal', even for here," she points out. "We do things differently in my hometown. I do not think anyone else here will use my style - and if they do, I would be very interested in it."
"But," she says, with a sudden grin, teeth very white against her dark skin, "that is for later. Shall we begin? Afterwards... a drink, perhaps? The loser can buy it."
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Yep. Lady Chloe is definitely someone else. Absolutely.
As Tethelle snags Talise's wrist, the taller woman moues her lips, then smiles slyly back at her companion. Good reflexes, she's got. Stepping back, she nods and stretches one arm across her collar, then the other, repeating the gesture a couple of times.
It's a new city to her, too - but she's been to Meribia before. The big city isn't as big a deal for her. This one's just unusual, but she's making the most of it. Besides - she likes being in front of an audience. Thus the fact that there are bystanders doesn't stop her from reaching back to draw her blunted practice sword. Even for a two-hander, it's less bulky than the sword Tethelle brought with her. "I don't think anyone here will use mine, either, but I know a few of the moves Althena's Guard knows. I know White Knight Leo's going to be entering. I'll try and use their style for you - the Waning Crescent, it's called. That way you'll have an advantage if you end up fighting him."
Not that Talise doesn't plan to beat him herself. Then again, Tethelle beating him would be a nice plus, too. With that in mind, she moves her borrowed weapon into a ready stance.
Talise's normal starting position is with her sword off to the side. Here, she sets her heels apart, dominant foot back, and holds her longsword across her body in a one-handed stance, other hand hovering near the hilt. It's a defensive posture, much more so than she'd normally use. "Let's do it," she urges with a grin. "But I'll warn you right now: I drink a lot."
<Pose Tracker> Tethelle Cirdian has posed.
Hmm, Tethelle thinks.
"But it is not your usual style?" she asks. "I suppose if you'd like some practice with it, I can certainly oblige. And it would be good to know it." Tethelle has never met Leo yet, but it's not something she's particularly looking for. She has the impression he wouldn't approve of her brand of shamanism; like a particularly well-armed version of Granas' church.
Tethelle's grin broadens. "So do I," she says. "And I have taken to Ignan cooking, also. Though I wish, sometimes, it had more spice involved. But I certainly drink."
She does.
Tethelle finally moves into a combat stance of her own. It's a very standard two-handed stance - body turned so that one side faces Talise, pommel of her sword near one hip, sword pointed forward. Defensive, but not enormously so, and easy to shift into a different stance in a hurry. She shifts around, slipping left and right as if warming up a little.
They are probably already getting a crowd, honestly. In the prep for the tournament, how could a friendly spar with a known competitor involved not draw the eye?
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
"I stole a few elements of it for my own," Talise says with a playful smile and a bat of lashes. "Once I started fighting the Guard a lot back home, I learned a few of their tricks, and how to beat 'em."
As Tethelle drops into that stance, Talise moves her other hand to her sword hilt, keeping her weapon angled and turning her body just enough that she can begin to move. She takes a couple of slow, prowling steps, beginning to circle Tethelle. Bright eyes search the smaller woman, watching her stance, measuring the way she holds herself.
The crowd only grows more attentive. Passing merchants and buyers look on at the two tan swordswomen with interest, waiting for the first strike. Talise takes it all in stride; an audience is far from unusual from her. Wetting her lips, she smirks past her sword at Tethelle. "We'll get spicy food with the drinks, then," she tosses out lightly.
A few more seconds tick by. Then, smoothly, Talise takes a step forward.
Her first strike is more exploratory than it is serious - a short jab towards Tethelle's dominant arm, as if to feel her out. She'll draw back after that swing and jab again, this time at the other arm. There's nothing extravagant about the attacks she's throwing - probing, harassing attacks intended to test the Baskar woman's defenses, her eyes moving to gauge how she defends herself.
<Pose Tracker> Tethelle Cirdian has posed.
Tethelle is less used to an audience, but she finds she likes it quite a bit. All eyes on her is a new experience and not one she really wants to turn down...
"Excellent," is Tethelle's response. Food and drink after a fight; that sounds just fine by her. Especially with a fun person to go drinking with; she's never done it with Talise before, but she's pretty sure it'd be a good time. Though isn't Tethelle a priestess? Certainly not the Athenian kind, apparently. (Ronfar excepted.)
Talise finds out one thing very quickly: for someone who uses a sword that big, Tethelle can certainly move it fast. She parries the pair of jabs with short, controlled sideways shifts, the sound of steel on steel sounding out immediately; she can't whip the blade around as fast as a one-hander (sheer momentum makes that impossible) but she has the knack of controlling the motion rather than, as some people do, using only massive wild swings.
Tethelle becomes more focused when the battle begins in earnest. She takes her swordplay seriously, certainly. Her own assault is sudden and significantly less probing than Talise; she comes in fast with a horizontal slash, circling as she does to add more force to the blow. It's a lot harder than a jab, that's for sure.
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Talise will definitely do it with Tethelle at any opportunity that comes up, trust me on that.
Tethelle's speed doesn't surprise Talise; she saw firsthand how quick the woman can move that massive blade during the battle in Adlehyde. Experiencing it firsthand is a little different. Still, physics does its thing; Talise draws back as Tethelle parries her blows, but traces the woman's movement as she manages the more cumbersome bulk of the sword. It's rather more bulky than Talise's own weapon, whether it's Rastaban or the more mundane longsword she's borrowed for this occasion.
As her sparring partner focuses in, Talise takes a single step back, anticipating that Tethelle will respond by attacking. And indeed, here comes the Baskar swordswoman, that massive blade whistling through the air.
Planting a heel defensively, Talise rolls her body backwards and whips her borrowed weapon out in a downward swat. It's less of a parry than it is a dodge. The hard stroke rips through the air, coming dangerously close to her - and then the flat of Talise's sword comes down against the flat of Tethelle's as the taller woman slams her blade down with a hard crash. It's a crafty move - an attempt to use Tethelle's aggressive move against her by unbalancing her and angling her sword towards the ground.
The follow-up is quick and crafty: She snaps her blade up, attempting to slice the blunted edge of it along the outside of Tethelle's arm, up to her shoulder. A single, deft blow before she darts back again, almost as if punishing her for her temerity.
Just like how Althena's Guard punished her for being aggressive, years ago.
<Pose Tracker> Tethelle Cirdian has posed.
Talise's speed serves her well. Tethelle has never actually gone up against anyone fast enough to take advantage of the sword swing to strike downward at it, and it knocks her blade downward, point approaching the rough marketplace street.
She gets a score, slashing up Tethelle's arm, though Tethelle twists and goes into something that's almost a half-crouch at the time of impact; the blade scrapes less off Tethelle's arm than Talise would probably like and clatters into her leather shoulder guard, the only piece of armour she wears.
Tethelle nods, acknowledging the hit. "First blood, if we were counting," she says - and she doesn't rise. She remains in a strange-looking low stance, one leg stretched out behind her, her blade held backwards but so low the tip is nearly touching the ground - almost like a short version of her prior stance. It looks uncomfortable to hold for long, but Tethelle remains balanced in that way, exposing her leg to a strike -
But that's a trap, because Tethelle snaps into action, rising up and giving an upwards near-vertical stroke to strike into Talise's hip and jar her off-balance. If Talise attacked her, she practically bulls through the offense, just using sheer upper-arm strength to knock it aside and continue her highly unusual strike - who attacks /upward/ like that?
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Talise being tall helps. Most of her swinging at Tethelle involves having to correct about seven or nine inches or thereabouts. Short Baskar is short, after all.
It helps Tethelle's cause that the swords are blunted and the blade isn't really going to hurt her. The weapon hits the shoulder guard before Talise pulls it away and darts back, a little grin tugging at her lips. "More where that came from!" she calls out, tone playful despite the situation. Even in the midst of a spar she's one to try and inject levity.
She blinks, though, as Tethelle leaves her leg exposed like that - and then she swings for the fences. It startles her, a little. Talise herself will attack upwards sometimes if she's throwing a Tidal Blow the right way, but it's unorthodox enough that she doesn't always expect it from others. She throws herself to the side, clenching her teeth and swinging her weapon out to again attempt to bat Tethelle's away, but the other woman's explosive attack is just a bit too quick, the huge sword bumping her thigh enough that one of the side laces of her shorts pops loose. The rest of the lacing, blessedly, remains intact. "Tch, clever girl," she murmurs as she pitches her weight forward, letting Tethelle's momentum carry her. The shorter woman roars past her.
And Talise begins to turn - as it becomes clear what the consequences are of slicing that high.
The rising slice leaves Talise's trailing leg inside of Tethelle's guard.
She brings it up suddenly. Her knee thuds towards the pit of Tethelle's stomach in a rough blow aimed to take the wind out of her. Then Talise lets her momentum carry her, tucking and rolling forward, coming to the ground on her side. Her arm sweeps out, sword attempting to tag Tethelle's hamstring as she whirls back to one knee.
<Pose Tracker> Tethelle Cirdian has posed.
Tethelle Cirdian isn't that short, come on.
(She's pretty short.)
Tethelle has no choice but to let her momentum carry her. Talise can figure out that one of the downsides of this sparring session is that Tethelle cannot use the full power of her blade; one of the advantages of a sword this heavy is the ability to smash through armour and break bones, but she'd rather not break anything of Talise's in practice and neither of them are wearing heavy armour. She will in the actual tournament, though. That's a real fight.
But even what she can use is enough to keep her moving; a sword in motion tends to keep' in motion, and it's not like she's using a rapier here. She lets it carry her up to a standing position, pulling her leg forward naturally as she reaches a normal standing position -
One of the other problems with Tethelle's style is that she's simply not used to dirty fighting. She's a blademaster; she fights fair, and she subconsciously expects her human opponents to do the same. Talise drives a knee into her gut, and Tethelle lurches, the wind well and truly knocked out of her. She doesn't recover as fast as she'd like, sliding off the knee and turning; Talise gets her from the side rather than the back, blade bouncing off Tethelle's leg; if it was a real blade it would have done some serious damage, though possibly not actually hamstrung her because of the angle.
Since it's a blunt sword, all it does is hurt like the dickens. This time Tethelle doesn't respond because she's still recovering her air, but she does strike; a sudden horizontal that she expects to miss, followed by pulling the sword back and trying to catch Talise hard in the side with the backswing.
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Tethelle may be able to figure out that Talise has no such disadvantage. Her own sword - not just this one, but Rastaban - is rather lighter than the rugged Baskar blade the smaller woman carries. With her height and strength, she's able to whip it around rather more quickly and precisely.
As for the dirty fighting, as far as Talise is concerned it's clean if she doesn't go for the eyes or go for the nuts.
As Tethelle lurches like that, Talise pushes up from her knee again, whirling her sword defensively out to her side. Tethelle's sudden backsnap of a counterstrike leaves her responding instinctively, whipping her sword out to parry the strike out to the side. She's quick to sidestep, though, but not quick enough to parry the second blow - her blade catches it, but here the mass of Tethelle's weapon works in the Baskar girl's favour, nearly knocking Talise's weapon out of her hands and deflecting it to the side before the weapon glances jarringly off her shoulder. The taller woman spins away with a wince and a breath. It would've been a difficult hit to recover from in a real fight, if she didn't have armour to help her.
"Good! Nice move," she calls out. The crowd cheers for the pair even as Talise steps forward, taking her turn to play aggressively - and she switches her sword to one hand. She's big enough that she can pull it off.
"Hoooah!" she shouts as she delivers a couple of quick, punishing one-handed slashes, less forceful, but sufficient to sting Tethelle's shoulder and side with a blow each, if she connects. Then she rears up, takes her sword in both hands, and lifts it.
She brings it down in a heavy blow, aimed to slam into Tethelle's dominant shoulder.
<Pose Tracker> Tethelle Cirdian has posed.
Tethelle is quick to capitalize on her opening. Even as Talise congratulates her - well, she waits for that, grinning up at her, but she decides to act almost immediately thereafter that.
When Talise comes in with one-handed blows, Tethelle is attacking almost simultaneously. The result is that their swords bounce off each other in a rather dramatic way, the ringing of blades audible - is Tethelle showing off for the audience, or trying to give them a show? She just might be. The increased mass of her blade means that this isn't going to knock her sword out of line, though the heavier sword also means she's a little slower, and has to stay on the reaction.
But rather than give a stronger blow after that, she ducks - and somersaults, rolling forward.
Talise's overhand blow doesn't hit Tethelle, because she's too low and moving forward. She tumbles next to the taller Beastwoman, practically bouncing up behind and to her left; she raises her sword into another stance Talise probably has not seen before. She keeps the blade about even with her head, and parallel to the ground; it points forward, like an off-center horn.
Tethelle's strike is a twisting thrust toward Talise's torso. High, of course - Tethelle is short but not that short, which means it probably would come in at about shoulder-height barring a guard. She whips it up afterwards, holding the blade high and trying to strike with a cascade of downward-angled slashes with a roar, similar to a trick she tried to break Siegfried's guard.
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Talise's sword isn't going to get through Tethelle's big giant sword. It clangs against the huge weapon uselessly. Talise doesn't seem too bothered by it; she grins fiercely back at her shorter friend.
And then Tethelle rolls. Talise sucks her breath in but lets her momentum carry her forward. She actually staggers but continues forward nevertheless. If nothing else it puts some distance between herself and Tethelle as the shorter woman rolls out behind her.
The huge sword comes hurtling around - and Talise pivots on a heel, gripping her sword hilt two-handed and angling the blade. Tethelle's heavier weapon hits Talise's in a shower of sparks, halting just shy of her shoulder. When Tethelle whips up from there, she actually takes the tips off a few locks of hair, coming so close to Talise's ear that she winces and closes one eye.
The heavy bombardment of two-handed blows leaves Talise planting her feet and raising her weapon to guard against those powerful strikes. There's so much mass behind Tethelle's weapon that she gradually batters Talise down to one knee, her shoulders bracing but gradually giving way. Grimacing, she holds out until Tethelle swings up one more time -
And then, with a shout of her own, she explodes forward, bursting off the ground by pushing off with that knee. Tethelle's next swing doesn't hit; the woman's forearms slam against Talise's shoulders, the pommel of the woman's sword crashing into the upper part of the half-Beastwoman's back. But Talise, meanwhile, is snapping her arms out to Tethelle's thighs and pulling them forward.
It's another roughhousing move - she attempts to slam her shoulder into Tethelle's midsection and pull her legs out from under her. The plan is to put the Baskar on her back - so that she can then attempt to straddle her and bring her sword up for a hard downward blow!
Gwen Whitlock has arrived.
Gwen Whitlock heads over to Silver Coast.
Gwen Whitlock has left.
<Pose Tracker> Tethelle Cirdian has posed.
This time, Tethelle is ready for a dirty trick. Once is a surprise. Twice, and although she wasn't sure exactly what Talise was going to do, she's aware it's something she would do.
When Talise slams into her, Tethelle keeps ahold of her sword but ends up shoved backwards by Talise's sudden rush, and then forward when she's pulled by Talise. The shoulder check hits Tethelle in the stomach with enough force that Talise might get a sore spot from when she drove it into the buttons on Tethelle's shirt, and she finds herself tipping backward -
Tethelle ends up on her back, with Talise on top of her. She still has her sword, but she doesn't have the room to swing it; she's shifted to hold it in only one hand when she went down, and as Talise brings up her sword for the blow, Tethelle slips downward so that Talise is higher up on her body.
This is because she has drawn the little knife she has at her waist and needs to get closer to use it. It prods Talise (gently, not hard enough to break skin, but enough that it's clear that yes it is a real knife) in the back as she's slid down to a point she can actually reach around the other woman. "Want to call it a draw?" she asks, grinning suddenly. "I could kill you before you struck, I think, but if you finished that blow you could take my head off with a real blade."
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
It's not even that dirty! Lunarian swordsmanship is just physical. Nevertheless, even with those buttons digging into her shoulder, Talise topples forward on top of Talise and brings her sword up, ready to bring it down -
Only for Tethelle to give her a little prod in the back. Her eyelids lower a touch, and she smiles a whimsical little smile, letting out a soft chuckle. "I don't know, I could finish bringing this down, after all. And normally I'd have armour on back there. But then again...."
She closes her eyes, then smiles quietly and lowers her arms, setting her sword off to one side. The little crowd around the pair applauds appreciatively as the fight comes to an end, even if there's no clear winner.
Leaning back, Talise slides her legs out from atop Tethelle, beginning to push herself up. She holds a hand out to the shorter girl, her grin returning, wide and playful. "Let's call it a draw! Good fight. You really surprised me a few times!"
Mirth dances behind her eyes. "Someone like General Leo might not be as physical as I am, but swords are a lot more common where I'm from and most people who use them will go to the body to get inside your guard. Plus he can change styles and go slow and aggressive if he has to. But I think you can beat him!"
<Pose Tracker> Tethelle Cirdian has posed.
Tethelle seems amused. "Normally I would use spiritual energy, too, but I refrained. It did not seem sporting."
Tethelle accepts the hand up (her leg still hurts from the 'hamstring' cut), grinning at the audience again. Resheathing her knife, she turns aside for a moment and hunches down, fixing tugging her shirt back straight from where things got knocked askew from having someone sit on her. Then she makes sure her half-skirt is still straight (it is).
That done, she grabs the hand again, clasping firmly. "It was a good battle. I haven't had a lot of practice lately and I would like to have more before the event. You have not seen everything I can do by any means! We should do it again. BUt later."
"Right now," Tethelle says, firmly, "we are getting a drink. But with no winner, I think we will have to take turns buying them, hmm?"
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Talise even goes so far as to throw a wink to the audience. She flashes a wave.
Clasping Tethelle's hand, she helps the woman up to her feet. Only then does she pick her sword up again and slides it back into its sheath. "Well, hey, if you want to get in a little more action before it starts, just look me up. I may not be participating but I sure don't mind helping you out. It'd be great if a friend won the whole thing." Her smile is wide and encouraging as she reaches out to rest a hand on Tethelle's shoulder, squeezing firmly.
Then she reaches down and fusses with the cut lace of her shorts. They crisscross along either hip, leaving an area of skin just covered by the laces. Deftly she knots the dangling lace, hoping it holds for now. "Let's take turns," she agrees as she looks up once more, adjusting the edge of her corset top.
She's not quite sure how Lynnai fights in these, but it's not a bad look, she decides.
"Drinks it is, then! And spicy food. We've gotta have spicy food after that."
<Pose Tracker> Tethelle Cirdian has posed.
Lynnai does by not really fighting. She casts spells. The number of times she actually hits someone can be counted on the fingers of one hand.
"My apologies," Tethelle adds, more quietly. "I didn't mean to rip that."
Tethelle spends a few moments making sure her sword is not chipped or broken (it isn't) before resting it against her shoulder again. "Absolutely," she agrees. "I can't cook the way we would have at home, here, but we should be able to find something. How hard can it be? And if we have to try a few things, that is also fine."
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Talise is realizing that wearing a corset top and being the hitter are not necessarily compatible.
"No, it's alright! Things rip when you fight," Talise laughs as she falls in with Tethelle, her hands resting at her hips. Rolling her shoulders, she flicks her head back, a few locks of hair stirring loose. "I'm just glad it wasn't my top!"
Her eyes glitter with anticipation as she looks around the market square; the crowd's beginning to disperse back to their daily lives at this point. "I think we'll find something," she assures. "In a big city like this, you get sort of a crossroads effect where people of all different cultures will come and settle, and some of them will bring their local food. In fact I can almost /guarantee/ we'll find spicy food, even if it's not what we're used to!"