2017-06-29: White Knight Leo vs. Lady Chloe Alexandre
- Log: White Knight Leo vs. Lady Chloe Alexandre
- Cast: Talise Gianfair, White Knight Leo
- Where: Lacour
- Date: June 29, 2017
- Summary: The White Knight of Althena's Guard goes toe-to-toe with the mysterious masked swordswoman from the Mystery Mare in the first round of the Lacour Tournament of Arms!
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
There were some surprise no-shows in the tournament. One of them was Talise Gianfair, a troublemaker from Lunar who disappeared while being pursued by Althena's Guard after yet again breaking the rules around alcohol, music and starting fights. Perhaps not wanting to parade a five-figure bounty around Lacour, she demurred from the tourney and went out eel fishing or something.
On an unrelated note, Lady Chloe Alexandre, a tall half-Beastwoman in a green mask and longcoat, sets down the large round shield she's carrying. It has the image of a bushy-bearded old man painted on it, over some cursive writing:
OLD MAN ETTLESBURY'S FAMOUS LIQUEURS
It May Be the Oldest Bottle on the Shelf
But the Line's Still the Longest!
A bustling, interested crowd has gathered around the stage today. The pair of fighters are new ones in these parts - Leo himself known only for his exploits in Adlehyde but coming from afar, and Lady Chloe not known at all but drawing attention for the costume and the free drinks.
The field of combat has been left in its most simple and basic form for now. The announcer, meanwhile, is just in the process of raising his voice.
"HELLOOOOOOOOOOO, SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT FANS!" bellows the announcer, brandishing his microphone and waving dramatically. "ARE YOU READY?! ARE YOU PSYCHED FOR ANOTHER IN-CRRRRRRRREDIBLE SATURDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN?!"
"It's Thursday," mutters Personal Assistant Pete-but-not-Jeff from somewhere under the podium.
"An IN-CRRRRRRREDIBLE THURSDAY NIGHT THROWNDOWN?!" Master Torque corrects. The crowd cheers again anyway.
"Then hold on to your asses," he bellows again, "and I know you got some faaaaat asses, because WE'VE GOT A BADASS OVER HERE!! HAILING FROM PAAAAAARTS UNKNOWN--"
"It says right here she's from Mystery Mare," Pete-but-not-Jeff mutters, unheard as Torque shouts on, "She iiiiiiis LADYYYYYYYY CHLOEEEEEE ALEXAAAAAAAANDRE!!!"
With a flourish, the woman in green slides her sword from its sheath and hoists it for the crowd with a flourish, then twirls it once and sets the point to the ground, both hands clasped atop the pommel. Feet slightly apart, she lifts her chin and looks across the arena with a defiant smile.
Behind the mask, Talise is privately wishing she'd drawn someone less formidable in the first round. The magnitude of this test isn't lost on her. And if Leo recognizes her, she'll be even worse off.
<Pose Tracker> White Knight Leo has posed.
Lady Chloe's opponent has not shown yet. Has he forfeited?
A thick wooden door slides open at one end of the arena floor, and a length of plush-looking red carpet rolls out, probably pushed by someone backstage. It unspools for a good twenty feet, and then--and only then--does the challenger appear. The challenger is... a pair of foot soldiers in Guard tabards, apparently, walking on either side of the red carpet, and no wait, there's Leo right now, walking along behind them. Straight-backed and proud, he nevertheless works the crowd a little as he appears, stopping about halfway to bow graciously. Once he reaches the end, he steps off, onto the arena floor. Leo's aides pick the carpet up and carry it backstage, and the door closes behind them.
"ALSO HAILING FROM PARTS UNKNOWN!" Torque bellows, because he doesn't really have any other volume setting, "WHITE KNIGHT LEO!" Pete doesn't bother to correct him this time.
"I accept your challenge, Lady Chloe!" Leo announces. "Tonight, a clash of arms will decide the true champion of the Silver Star!" Does he not think he can lose?
Yeah, probably.
Noeline (noe) pages Talise Gianfair and White Knight Leo: but will you think the same after the cutscene where she bombards one half of the arena and makes even the bomb sponsors freak out
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Lady Chloe surprisingly didn't plan anything all that spectacular. She does, however, raise her eyebrows as Leo shows up with a literal red carpet and a couple of heralds.
(Now why didn't I ask Lynnai to do that,) she reflects, before realizing it'd blow her cover. Plus Lynnai would probably say no. Instead she holds her ground stoically, letting the breeze play with the train of her coat even as the crowd cheers on the spectacular arrival of the White Knight himself.
As Leo challenges her, the mysterious Lady Chloe wets her lips, then smiles a wide, fierce smile. "I wasn't being facetious when I said that you're the challenger here, White Knight Leo," she states, letting her voice carry with a note of authority behind it. "For there are two stars that shine in the heavens. You may be the champion of one, but can you master another... or will another master you?"
With that she flips her sword up and lifts it in a brief, formal swordsman's salute. The crowd oohs and applauds, clearly appreciating the melodrama.
(This is oddly fun,) Talise decides.
From the announce booth, meanwhile, Torque gestures broadly and shouts, "Y'know, in my time I wrestled a whole lotta countries, but WHO CAN TELL WHAT INSANITY COMES OUT OF PARTS UNKNOWN! /NOW!!/ /AAAARE YOUUUUUUU READY FOR TH
In mid-speech, Torque's microphone goes dead. He keeps on shouting for a full five seconds before stopping. He frowns and taps the mic a couple of times.
Finally, Pete-but-not-Jeff sighs and picks up a second mic. "Round start," he says in a flat tone.
A bell rings.
Wetting her lips, Lady Chloe springs forward. The way she's holding her sword - it's the Rastaban, of course, though she's unwrapped the hilt to let the green and black checker pattern of the grip show - is familiar. It's across her body at an angle, holding her guard even as she closes the distance.
It's a pretty typical Waning Crescent move, to be honest - but less typical is the fact that she's powering forward and rolling her shoulders. "Then let's decide it!" she shouts at Leo as she bears down -
And attempts to smash him not with her sword blade, but with the pommel of the weapon, aiming to slam it into his sword arm with a hard, debilitating jolt.
That one's /not/ a standard Waning Crescent trick.
GS: Talise Gianfair has attacked White Knight Leo with Surge Rolls In! GS: Talise Gianfair has completed her action. GS: White Knight Leo takes a solid hit from Talise Gianfair's Surge Rolls In for 91 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> White Knight Leo has posed.
Leo doesn't suspect a thing. It's /obviously/ not Talise Gianfair, minor criminal and minor pain in the ass of the Guard. Talise doesn't wear a mask!
As the bell rings, Leo settles into a defensive stance of his own, drawing his left foot back and lining up his body behind his blade. He studies his opponent, seemingly content to let Lady Chloe come to him--Leo's eyes glimmer as he recognizes the approach, and he raises his blade, only to realize his mistake a second too late. He whips his sword arm back, but not before Talise's pommel-strike slams into his forearm. Leo scowls, more or less forcing his fingers to keep their hold, despite the pain. "Clever," Leo says, "but allow me to show you how it's done!" Leo surges forwards, perhaps realizing that a purely defensive game isn't smart here. He spins on a heel, bringing the pommel of his own sword down at the back of Lady Chloe's hand! It's a bit more direct than what she tried, and a bit riskier. It's not the sort of move Waning Crescent uses, either.
GS: White Knight Leo has attacked Talise Gianfair with Pommel Smash! GS: White Knight Leo has completed his action. GS: Talise Gianfair critically Guards a hit from White Knight Leo's Pommel Smash for 19 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Talise got okay at swording mainly by getting her ass kicked by Althena's Guard over and over again, not going to lie. She picked up a few tricks.
Rather than press in aggressively, Lady Chloe takes a long step to the side and back, whirling with a crackle of the trains of her big silver-trimmed green seafarer's coat. Again she slips her weapon into a defensive stance, her hands gripping the hilt tightly. Behind her mask, her eyes dart across Leo, reading the way he carries himself. "Then show me," she fires back with a fierce smile.
He does. It's not one of the standard Guard moves - but then, Leo is the mightiest of the Guard, and reputed to be the greatest swordsman in the land. It still catches Lady Chloe by surprise. Sucking in her breath with a hiss, she defense the best way she can think of that Leo won't anticipate.
She steps /into/ the attack and moves her sword in the way.
Angling Rastaban, she locks crosspieces with Leo, slowing down his swing with a crash of steel. The pommel of his weapon smacks against the back of her gauntlet, but the momentum is blunted, jarring the hand, but her other hand tightens to account for it. The crowd oohs.
In the announcers' booth, Torque is tapping his mic a couple of times. He opens his mouth to shout something epic but mostly gets an earful of feedback. Wincing, he shakes it a little more before just shouting, "BLADE LOCK! BLADE LOCK! BLADE LOCK! THEY GOT THE BLADE LOCK! HOW BADASS CAN YOU GET?!"
Pete-but-not-Jeff mutters, "It's been fifteen seconds."
Lady Chloe lets out a low grunt through the swordlock. "Don't think I don't appreciate your skill," she says, tone underlaid with fire. "Or the lesson. But there's one thing you should know."
With a sudden shifting of her weight, Lady Chloe twists her wrists, suddenly angling Rastaban off to one side and down. The quick move is intended to break Leo's guard and drive the White Knight's blade towards the crowd - and then, bodily, she steps into him and attempts to check him with her shoulder.
She follows it up by bringing her sword forward in a hard, tearing slash. "HooooooooOOOOOAHT!!" she roars, because she can't shout TIDAL BLOW without breaking kayfabe.
GS: Talise Gianfair has attacked White Knight Leo with Tidal Blow! GS: Talise Gianfair has completed her action. Gwen Whitlock heads over to Adelyn Ranchlands. Gwen Whitlock has left.
GS: White Knight Leo critically Guards a hit from Talise Gianfair's Tidal Blow for 24 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> White Knight Leo has posed.
Leo bares his teeth at Lady Chloe, staring at her over their crossed blades. She can feel him testing for an opening, trying to see if he can throw her off-balance while their blades are locked--but no dice. He sees the shift in Lady Chloe's stance a second before she whips her blade away, and frees his weapon from the lock by pulling it back. Lady Chloe lunges, but Leo's sword is suddenly /right there/, shoving her blade away before it can finish what would've been a devastating strike to his chest.
There's a telltale flash from the arena floor--a red flicker that starts at the edges, and moves inwards--and quite suddenly, both Leo and Talise are in the middle of an old-growth forest, with treetrunks conveniently positioned as cover.
"Not bad," Leo says, with grudging admiration. He takes a step forward, bringing his bootheel down violently on the turf below--and the earth and stone beneath Talise suddenly revolt, thrusting up beneath her as jagged spikes!
GS: White Knight Leo has attacked Talise Gianfair with Rock Viper! GS: White Knight Leo has completed his action. GS: Talise Gianfair guards a hit from White Knight Leo's Rock Viper for 75 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Trees suddenly loom around Leo and Lady Chloe. The change in setting ratthes her a little but she doesn't let it show in her face - mostly because she's too busy being pushed away from Leo. The woman in the green mask lets her momentum carry her; she hits the ground and rolls away to gain some distance, coming up to her knee.
Then the earth ripples beneath her, and Talise remembers excruciatingly that White Knight Leo has an advantage over her: His ability to exploit the power of magic. The stony protrusion thrusts her up into the air; she gasps and tumbles backwards, the jagged rocks slamming into her back, but her armoured breastplate saves her more than some bruising before she's able to roll off of it and touch down with a thump of armoured boots, ending up just in front of a couple of trees.
"What a /maneuver!" roars Torque as the audience squeals with delight. "Just whipping out his ROCK HARD VIPER! Such BRAZENNESS! Such POWER!!"
Hiding under the podium, Pete-but-not-Jeff blushes and touches his index fingers together bashfully.
Lady Chloe begins to move forward again; while there's still that hint of Waning Crescent in the way she holds her sword, her movements come a little quicker and more assertively than a trained Guard member would. "I should've known you'd come with a trick up your sleeve," she tosses out with a fierce grin. "Leave it to the White Knight to master the art of magic /and/ the art of swordsmanship. You're every bit the man they say you are - maybe even the greatest warrior in all of Lunar!
"But there's still something you should know."
Lady Chloe bursts forward. It seems like she's going to close into melee range - but at the last moment she lunges to the side, hits the ground and rolls, coming up on one knee. Her sword is in her left hand. The right has pulled something out from under her coat. It's long, gunmetal and brown and has a large label etched across the pump:
SPONSORED BY THE EVERSTEAD-REY COMPANY
"I learned how to Filgaia," she says before firing off a single shotgun blast at the White Knight.
GS: Talise Gianfair has attacked White Knight Leo with bounce squeak discharge boomstick! GS: Talise Gianfair has completed her action. GS: White Knight Leo critically Guards a hit from Talise Gianfair's bounce squeak discharge boomstick for 19 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> White Knight Leo has posed.
Leo grins. "Were you expecting anything less, Lady Chloe?" he says. He has to give her credit--she's skilled. And for someone who is extremely vocal about her dislike of Althena's Guard, she's certainly got a lot of practice with their signature style. Who is this mysterious stranger, and where does she come from? Can she be persuaded to join the light, and give up her roguishly dashing yet spiritually inappropriate ways? Questions for another time. Right now, Lady Chloe has her own plan!
Leo hangs back, blade at the ready, following Talise with his eyes. The tuck-and-roll immediately grabs his attention, and when he sees her sword hand darting under her coat, his eyes widen. Leo moves with speed born of surprise, darting behind the trunk of a large, sturdy-looking oak. Most of the shotgun blast goes right into the tree, splintering the illusory wood; bits of bark and pulp spray everywhere, but the tree is still standing afterwards. Leo brushes sawdust out of his eyes, having not seen the product placement. Instead, he just sees the shotgun. "So you have," Leo says, with another of those grudging acknowledgments. "I suppose that /I/ will have to do the same! After all, what proud Filgaian warrior would neglect his study of--"
Air Slash?
"DEMON FANG!" Oh. Leo lunges out from behind the tree, sweeping his blade down in a swift, vicious arc. It touches the ground, briefly, a wave of force jumping from the blade to the earth, and racing towards Lady Chloe! Naturally, it will discharge in a violent spray if it touches anything. Naturally, it is followed by three more DEMON FANGs.
GS: White Knight Leo has attacked Talise Gianfair with Demon Fang! GS: White Knight Leo has completed his action. GS: Talise Gianfair critically Guards a hit from White Knight Leo's Demon Fang for 28 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
It doesn't take long for Chloe to put the gun away. The crowd has a mixed reaction to it; ARMs, after all, are new to this tournament.
"WHERE ON EARTH DID SHE EVEN HIDE THAT," Torque yells from the announce team, bouncing up and down like a chihuahua in a sugar bowl.
The shot doesn't hit the mark in any case, and the woman in the green mask lets out a low rumble in the back of her throat. He adapts pretty quickly to changing situations, she realizes. No wonder he's good.
"Then show me what you've got!" Chloe shouts across the intervening distance - and then Leo's bearing down on her with a thunderous Demon Fang. The heavy slash slams downwards - and the White Knight's blade crosses with Rastaban with a steely clash. The wave of force explodes from the White Knight's blow, pushing Talise back a few inches and buffeting her heavily, but she clenches her teeth and shoulders into it with a growl. As Leo swings at her again, she braces her shoulders and defends, swinging her much-less-magical sword back against the warrior's. Again and again shockwaves and debris roar from the lion's weapon, battering the green-masked woman in a spray of stony shrapnel and wood fragments, but she's able to get her weapon into the path of his every time; the chunks of garbage pound at her, but she's able to stand her ground.
/That/ wakes up the crowd. The cheers peak as audience members begin to rise in their seats. "UNBELIEVABLE!" Torque shrieks. "What swordsmanship! What technique! WHAT BAAAAAADASS FIGHTING SPIRIT!!!"
It only gets more badass. Eyes flashing wolfishly, Lady Chloe intercepts the third Demon Fang with another bladelock - and with a sudden flick of her wrist, she attempts to force Leo's sword to the side and step inside his guard. Her height makes it easier - she's taller than most men, after all, and stronger than most, though Leo as a full Beastman may have her beat there. Nevertheless she brings her blade back --
"--and I'll show you MINE!" she shouts as she attempts to deliver a hard blow to Leo's dominant shoulder - and then she follows it up by rolling her shoulder and attempting to drive it into his chest, hoping to both cripple his sword arm and stagger him all in one combination!
GS: Talise Gianfair has attacked White Knight Leo with Roaring Wave Stance! GS: Talise Gianfair has completed her action. GS: White Knight Leo takes a solid hit from Talise Gianfair's Roaring Wave Stance for 102 hit points! GS: Break! Statuses applied to White Knight Leo!
<Pose Tracker> White Knight Leo has posed.
Leo's still trying to figure that out himself, Torque.
"GLADLY!" Leo roars, as Lady Chloe challenges him yet again. Blades clash. Demon Fangs tear up the earth, sending waves of rock and wood and forest detritus flying everywhere. The cheering helps keep Leo in the game as well, focusing him in the face of such determined opposition. Of course they're cheering him! They're clearly impressed!
Then Lady Chloe does something unexpected. Leo steps to the side, flowing with her strike rather than allowing her to knock his sword out of position. It's a second too late for him to stop her strike to his shoulder, though--a spot of blood blooms on Leo's immaculate white uniform, and he bites back a grunt of pain. Chloe slams into him, driving him back--Leo slams into the bole of another tree, the breath rushing from his lungs. The crowd starts roaring even louder. Leo forces himself to suck in a breath. He draws back his blade, light glimmering dangerously on its edge--
And then he strikes, sweeping his sword through a series of lightning-fast maneuvers. Waves of light and air pressure gather along it with each stroke, resulting in a veritable storm of negative-pressure blades bearing down on Lady Chloe!
GS: White Knight Leo has attacked Talise Gianfair with Buzz Blade! GS: White Knight Leo has completed his action. GS: Talise Gianfair critically Guards a hit from White Knight Leo's Buzz Blade for 31 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
The sight of scarlet staining Leo's pristine white uniform fills Talise with a touch of grim confidence. This may be an exhibition match - but she's at least landed a hit.
The crowd roars around the pair of them; the noise ripples through the magically-generated trees along with a stiff wind, loose leaves streaming through the combat zone. Clicking her teeth together, Lady Chloe pushes forward, ready to press the advantage she's carved out here.
But Leo's quick to slash back. Light and air pound through the landscape, tearing those leaves to shreds. Pressure blades slam into her but she plants a heel and brings her sword up again, gritting her teeth. It takes all the effort she has, and some of the blades still hit violently; they break across her shoulders, tearing at her bright green coat, battering her burnished armour and denting it, bruises beginning to accumulate. A blade slices across her cheek, fleeting but solid enough to draw a trickle of blood.
"Dear Granas, he's beating her like a scalded dog!" shouts Torque from the sidelines. "LIKE A SCALDED DOG!! THIS WHITE KNIGHT LEO IS A TRUUUUUE BADASS! WHAT POWER AND SKILL!! HOW GREAT A CHAMPION IS THIS GUY, ANYWAY?!"
The crowd roars their approval. It's like a physical wave of sound buffeting the fighting floor.
And then it reverses into a collective gasp that feels, for a second, like the air being sucked out of the arena and into the lungs of hundreds of onlookers.
That's because Lady Chloe has suddenly burst through the wave of thunderous strokes. Her coat billows behind her, pale hair rippling as she bunches her shoulders and closes ranks with the White Knight of Althena's Guard in a brazen charge. Her gauntlets tighten around Rastaban and her shoulders bunch.
"ALTHENA'S /STOOOOOORM,/" she roars as she winds up - and the roaring wind itself is slashed along a neat line as she delivers a driving, powerful blow!
Then one more. Then one more. It would be a Tidal Blow sequence were she calling it by that name while under the mask.
GS: Talise Gianfair has attacked White Knight Leo with Tidal Blow! GS: Talise Gianfair has completed her action. GS: CRITICAL! White Knight Leo guards a hit from Talise Gianfair's Tidal Blow for 89 hit points! GS: Cripple! Statuses applied to White Knight Leo!
<Pose Tracker> White Knight Leo has posed.
For a second, as she bursts through the enfilade of Buzz Blades, Lady Chloe sees something unfamiliar on White Knight Leo's face. His eyes are wide, and his mouth hangs open ever-so-slightly. He remembers Zed, who played the fool to lure him in--is this Lady Chloe employing the same strategy? He doesn't have time to think about it. Chloe's blade draws blood again, carving a long, red line across Leo's chest. It's fairly shallow, but as he leaps back, blood drips onto the forest floor. If nothing else, Talise can content herself with the fact that she wounded the White Knight /twice/.
Given a bit of breathing room, Leo turns his focus inward, feeling the beat of his heart as blood pulses through him. It's steady and firm, and enduring as the earth beneath his feet. The earth does not bleed. It does not feel pain.
The bleeding stops abruptly, and Leo's exposed skin takes on the same dark grey cast as the ground--a layer of rock forms from nothing, covering his flesh. Leo is quick to press the offensive once he's secured himself. He leaps to the side, kicking off a tree, and off another, and off another--he hangs in the air for a moment, blade drawn, before Talise. He is the very picture of grim resolve.
"RISING FALCON!" Leo falls, rushing forwards towards Talise as he does so. He leads with the point of his blade, trying to stab her clean through, and end this fight before she can pull anything else! If nothing else, Lady Chloe Alexandre has shown White Knight Leo that she is /dangerous/.
GS: White Knight Leo used Mystic on White Knight Leo! 100 Temporary HP gained! All statuses cleared! GS: White Knight Leo has activated a Force Action! GS: White Knight Leo has attacked Talise Gianfair with Rising Falcon! GS: White Knight Leo has completed his action. GS: CRITICAL! Talise Gianfair critically Guards a hit from White Knight Leo's Rising Falcon for 30 hit points! GS: Talise Gianfair has activated a Force Action! GS: You have activated the Force Action Full Clip!
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
If nothing else, Talise is just proud that she's doing better than Claude. Then again, Claude advanced.
As her blade hits home again, however shallowly, she doesn't pursue the attack just yet. She doesn't necessarily want to kill the man, and she's fairly sure he's got something up his sleeve for her when the time comes. Instead, the White Knight draws on that stony magic - and the man's wounds heal themselves before her very eyes.
"So this is the power of the White Knight of Althena, huh," she murmurs, setting her jaw and planting one heel, dropping back into a defensive posture. She hurt him, sure - but he's still coming at her and he seems to be as strong as ever.
(Don't let your anger rule you,) a little voice in her mind reminds her. (Not like it always has.)
Leo powers in, sword-point first, and Lady Chloe tightens her grip - and she swings out to try and slam the flat of her sword against Leo's.
The audience /gasps./ Sparks fly as steel screams across steel. Dancing sparks shower across Chloe's breastplate. The White Knight's sword comes so close - perilously close. It shears into Chloe's armour, carving a rut into it, revealing a sliver of the undergarment beneath before cutting that too, leaving a red line beneath --
But it's shallow. Rastaban's blade finally catches on Leo's crosspiece. Bracing her shoulders and hips, Lady Chloe keeps it from going any further. It takes all she has. The crowd gasps again - then roars like stirring thunder.
"You really are quite a man, White Knight Leo," she rumbles with obvious admiration.
Then she snaps her sword upward in a lightning-fast arc of a blow - aiming to deliver a heavy blow while she's inside Leo's guard.
It's not the only one she delivers. With a shout, she plants her heel and delivers another short, flowing slash, then another, then one more. Her combination is a veritable whirlwind of lightning strikes, coming high, low, each one short, controlled and ungodly fluid. She's almost dancing through the combination of techniques, as if she could try to finesse her way through the White Knight's guard.
It's not particularly magical, but Rastaban's blade seems to sing in the air.
GS: Talise Gianfair has attacked White Knight Leo with Savior's Storm! GS: Talise Gianfair has completed her action. GS: White Knight Leo guards a hit from Talise Gianfair's Savior's Storm for 102 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> White Knight Leo has posed.
"And you, mysterious stranger, are no slouch, either!" This time, Leo's compliment is a little less grudging. It helps that Lady Chloe paid him a genuine compliment. Blades clash once again.
The first strike slams into Leo's other shoulder, but instead of cutting into his flesh, it smashes into his rock armor with an audible /crunch/. It crumbles away into powder, which floats through his clothing--oblivious to the laws of physics--before dissolving into motes of light. Leo takes a half-step back, sweeps his sword in, and answers Lady Chloe's assault with everything he can muster. Sweat starts to bead on his brow; his blade moves back and forth, catching one strike after another.
The crowd keeps right on roaring. This match is definitely going to be one for the Tournament history books.
Leo jumps back the moment he sees an opening, disengaging from Lady Chloe as he hops up onto the stump of a fallen tree. "If only we had more blades like you--!" Leo says, a mixture of frustration, admiration, and excitement in his voice. "I almost hate to end this, but I must!" He springs into the air again, light gleaming on the edge of his sword. Golden energy gathers along his weapon, unstoppable determination channeled into fighting force.
"LION'S HOWL!" Leo swings. A small sphere of golden light flies from his blade, rapidly growing in size until it's at least ten feet across. The fuzzy outer edge becomes a blazing mane, and the core of the ball reshapes itself into what is unmistakably the head of a lion. An earth-shaking roar rips through the stadium, almost as loud as the fireworks from the opening ceremonies. It shakes the trees, and makes stones on the ground jitter. Lady Chloe is going to be in for a very bad time if she doesn't get out of the way.
GS: White Knight Leo has attacked Talise Gianfair with Lion's Howl! GS: White Knight Leo has completed his action. GS: Talise Gianfair has activated a Force Action! GS: You have activated the Force Action Guard! GS: Talise Gianfair guards a hit from White Knight Leo's Lion's Howl for 112 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Talise could get used to the crowd cheering them on if she weren't trying everything she could to just put down an opponent who by all rights should be far, far more skilled than she is.
Again Lady Chloe swings, but as Leo lunges out of her combination with less blows landed than she wanted, she can but let her breath out through her teeth in a slow rush. She again gives the man an opening, figuring she'll need to defend against something pretty bad after that one.
She does. Leo summons up his mana into the form of a lion and hurls it into Lady Chloe's path. The woman -
- doesn't get out of the way. "As you like it, then," she fires back - and she whips Rastaban into a defensive stance and pushes it /into/ the leonine mass of magic.
The thunderous mana strike blazes across her; her coat tears and ripples away, burns and slashes manifesting across her cheeks, armour creaking and buckling in places. Her shoulders strain under the immense force. A pained snarl spills from her as she braces herself... and the lion's maw swallows her before erupting in a blinding halo of light. Onlookers gasp in awe, applauding and cheering. Even Torque is screaming that it's over.
Until the light fades away - and a figure wrapped in green comes hurtling through the enormous dust cloud that's been kicked up by the intensity of the battle. Light and dust billow away from Lady Chloe. A few trickles of blood stream behind her, along with whisps of smoke and tatters of her coat.
Behind the mask, her eyes are hot as she closes ranks with Leo again; her grin is wide and intense even as she thunders through the smoky aftermath, beaten but still able to bear down with a fierce, rising blow - a monstrous stroke aimed to tear through the man's defenses and mark him across the upper body, then another hard blow. Not magical ones. Just doggedly determined.
"I'm having far too much fun to end it now," she pants through those swings and that wild grin.
GS: Talise Gianfair has attacked White Knight Leo with Tidal Blow! GS: Talise Gianfair has completed her action. GS: White Knight Leo has activated a Force Action! GS: White Knight Leo takes a solid hit from Talise Gianfair's Tidal Blow for 125 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> White Knight Leo has posed.
Leo's boots hit the ground again, and he sinks into a crouch for a moment, breathing heavily. The dust has hidden Lady Chloe's fate. He rises, raising his blade, just in case. It /looks/ like she's out, but--
There!
Chloe punches through Leo's guard, carving another slash into his chest. The White Knight staggers, but keeps his footing, staying upright in the face of what must be terrible pain. If there's one thing he has plenty of, it's dogged determination. "But a fight like this needs a proper climax," Leo says, grinning right back at Chloe. He slips forwards, feinting towards her chest, then her face, then--
"DEMON FANG!" A wave of force erupts from the ground at point-blank range.
GS: White Knight Leo has activated a Force Action! GS: White Knight Leo has attacked Talise Gianfair with Demon Fang! GS: White Knight Leo has completed his action. GS: Talise Gianfair has activated a Force Action! GS: You have activated the Force Action Guard! GS: Talise Gianfair guards a hit from White Knight Leo's Demon Fang for 82 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
At this point, there's no defending anymore. It's just a brawl now - a knock-down, drag-out swordfight.
Chloe slams through Leo's defenses, but the White Knight doesn't fall. In fact, he strikes back with a grin, fakes her out and catches her before she can deliver her next attack, and again that thunderous wave of force strikes out. The enormous wave slams into Chloe, tearing at her armour, pushing her back a foot or so.
She clenches her teeth and grins a wolfish grin even as she rolls herself into it, the intense pressure holding her at bay for a painful moment. Her muscles ache. It's all she can do to keep on her feet. She's fairly sure that all Leo needs to do is strike her once more and it'll be over. "You're right," she rasps. "It does need a proper finish."
Her hand snaps down to her hip - and she flicks something out of her coat. It's a single knife. She tosses it straight up, left-handed. The weapon whirls in the air, flipping hilt over blade, back again.
And while that's happening, Lady Chloe takes Rastaban in both hands, clenches her shoulders, drives herself forward, and attempts to power into him bodily - at which point she'll slam her blade down towards his, attempting to strike his sword out of his hands altogether!
GS: Talise Gianfair has attacked White Knight Leo with Infinitely Rippling Stream! GS: Talise Gianfair has completed her action. GS: White Knight Leo guards a hit from Talise Gianfair's Infinitely Rippling Stream for 56 hit points! GS: White Knight Leo has Fallen! He is no longer able to fight!
<Pose Tracker> White Knight Leo has posed.
Leo spots the knife. He tracks it, his eyes darting over to it, and then back to Chloe's blade--it's a feint, of course it's a feint, why didn't he see it? Leo lets out a wordless roar of defiance, summoning up everything he has left. He sweeps his blade up, catching Rastaban--
It happens in an instant. There's a clear, pure sound, like the ringing of a silver bell, and Leo's sword goes flying out of his hands. It arcs through the air, and buries itself in a tree with an audible /thunk/. If this were a real fight, he would be hard-pressed to get it back before Chloe could follow up with something nastier. The White Knight is silent for a moment, his expression unreadable. He slowly lowers his hands to his sides, his body shuddering in something that's not quite a cough.
Leo laughs. "Well done, Lady Chloe Alexander," he says.
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Behind the Lady Chloe mask, Talise Gianfair is at her absolute limit. She's never fought a battle this demanding, this exhilarating, this challenging. She's left everything on the battlefield.
Including her knife. It falls to the ground behind her and buries itself there halfway up the hilt. For a long moment, Lady Chloe just stands there with her sword in an angled position, waiting for Leo's sword to land where it will. The woody *THUNK* of it cuts through her mind with a certainty that doesn't quite overcome her disbelief at the situation.
The crowd is roaring at a fever pitch. Up in the stands, Torque is thundering, "IIIIIIINCREDIBLE! AN UNBELIEVABLE MOVE! AND THE WINNER IS LADYYYY CHLOEEEEE ALEXANDEEEEEEER!!!"
And White Knight Leo, the man who heads up the guard who have systematically ruined her life, is laughing - good-naturedly - and congratulating her on beating him.
Lady Chloe lowers her head, her voice quiet to escape being heard by anyone else outside the ring. "I should be saying the same to you, White Knight," she admits. "It was a good fight."
One tired arm lowers Rastaban; the point touches to the dirt as she frees up her right hand and slides the gauntlet off it.
She offers it to Leo, her eyes searching for his. A gesture of respect.
Seraph Edna has arrived.
<Pose Tracker> White Knight Leo has posed.
Leo takes Lady Chloe's hand and shakes it, firmly. "I disagree with you," he says, as he looks her in the eye, "but I cannot deny your spirit. Go with Althena, Lady Chloe." Leo's grin gets a little toothier, a little more proud. "I'll catch up to you soon enough!" Did she think he was going to let her escape after a fight like that? Surely not!
<Pose Tracker> Talise Gianfair has posed.
Talise is still in disbelief. She's sure this was some kind of fluke.
And the worst part is that nobody will ever know that she did it once she takes the mask off.
She smiles nevertheless, shaking the big man's hand firmly. "We'll meet again. Be sure of that," she promises with a widening smile, her cheeks, scraped as they are, flushing. "Be well, White Knight. And... take care of yourself."