Stoatorian Guard Open The Trenches The Prodigal Son Returns

[Alwyn Ryalor]

(Collab post with @Caden S. Freemont)

The marten nodded. "I'm fine without safety equipment for this bout. No head shots, be honest about if I'm hit, stay in the ring--got it." He eyed Alwyn's positioning and adjusted his own. "I'll stick with sword and board for the armed rounds. It's been my go-to for most of my career. Tricky against the polearms, certainly, but there are strengths and weaknesses to every kit, aye?"

Caden dropped into a ready stance, shield up to cover his center of mass, sword held in his left paw, blade held up and behind his shoulder. He waited, watching the fox. Unless forced to act first, with the shorter range weapon it was unwise to make the first move against a beast wielding a poleaxe. Better to let Alwyn step in and close the gap, then respond from there.

Alwyn gave Caden a brief nod in response, circling the marten and looking for any particular weaknesses, and, indirectly, seeing if the marten’s experience lined up with his story. His expression was serious-he played around a lot of time, but when it came to combat, he just as cool and collected as his father. Unlike Daniil and Eirene, who had gone at it comparatively quickly, the two more experienced beasts simply watched each other, waiting for the opportunity to deliver a lightning strike or series of strikes that might end the match with minimal energy expended.

Having the advantage of range, and sensing a slight weakness to his opponent’s guard on the right, he seemingly began to start a two-handed blow towards the marten’s left paw which held his sword, only to then abruptly move his right footpaw first, twisting his body and striking instead to the right at the maximum length and power he could he could with poleaxe, continuing to move and not stay in one place as his grandfather had taught him while maintaining his distance and judging Caden’s reaction time. Hopefully, he might have staggered the older marten, allowing him to be more aggressive.

 

[Caden S. Freemont]

Caden deftly shifted his footpaws with the fox's maneuver and the poleaxe struck the shield with a thunk. The marten took a portion of the blow's power into his arm and shoulder, but carried some of the momentum off the surface of the shield as he deflected the strike and moved in with an explosive burst of speed. His sword swung down and across, his left arm extending to slice the blade towards Alwyn's extended shoulder.

 

[Alwyn Ryalor]

Alwyn swiftly and surely, with the expertise of years of training in Amarone, used the back end of his polearm to knock the marten’s sword arm upwards, letting the marten’s blow swing over him instead and leaving him off balance for a moment. If Alwyn had his full plate armor on, he could have gone in for the killing blow by bringing around the front end polearm and taking the inevitable backhanded sword counterstroke from Caden on his chest as he would have smashed through whatever the marten could bring at him, but he did not have it on. Instead, using the time it would take for the jack to recover, Alwyn regained his distance and smiled slightly. This one had some real fight in him, something he did not often get to have these days. He would have to be careful. Continuing to circle around the marten, he wondered if Sken’s son would let him retain the initiative with his reach where he could continue to pummel him from a distance with relatively easy counters or if he would try to force him into closer combat where he would have more of an advantage.

 

[Caden S. Freemont]

The marten was fast, recovering in a way that could indicate he had suspected Alwyn's counter to his attack, as though he was testing out the fox's capabilities as much as Alwyn was testing his. He did not hesitate to close the distance this time, moving with a speed that belied his age and told of a lifetime of somatic fluency that had begun before he took his first steps. Coming in with shield raised, it looked as though he would take a lateral swing at the todd's exposed flank. With a deft flick of his wrist and shift of his footpaws, the blade suddenly tracked higher towards his opponent's neck and his shield bulled forward against the poleaxe with the full force of Caden's weight and strength in an attempt to press the fox off balance and close in to prevent full use of the longer weapon.

 

[Alwyn Ryalor]

Although Alwyn had expected and prepared for a counterattack, the swiftness, the kind that could only be done through endless training and experience, surprised him momentarily, before his own instincts took over from the thousands of hours of dedicated drilling he himself had poured into things. He caught the feint by watching Caden’s footpaws, catching the blade’s tip at joint of the forward hammer and then the head of the poleaxe, and yanking it forward as he again moved to the side, this time shoving forward as he did so with his body against the shield to send Caden further away, even if he failed to disarm him with the move. Now, however, his attitude had shifted to match the heir of Sken’s. He was no longer merely probing-this was now a proper battle. The match would be decided in the next couple of blows, at least for this round. Veterans did not flail about as much as Daniil and Eirene did.

 

[Caden S. Freemont]

Caden bore his teeth in a feral grin as Alwyn countered. This fox was the sort of beast Caden would have hired for his mercenary squadron, at least based on his skill. He had to make a quick decision whether or not to maintain his grip on his sword as he was pulled and then pushed by the skilled todd. Without the option of a full shield blow to Alwyn's face given the established rules, which was what the marten was inclined to do in this situation, he kept his grip on the hilt of the sword and instead shoved back hard against the fox with his shield and used the edge of it to catch the head of the poleaxe. He drew back with his strength and weight to pull Alwyn towards him, freeing his sword and setting himself up for a swing at the fox's midsection.

 

[Alwyn Ryalor]

Alwyn’s entire concentration was on the fight before him, his eyes scanning for any true weakness, any momentary hiccup, instinct honed by training since kithood. In the midst of close combat this vicious, one hand no time to really think, only to act based on one’s training and one’s subconscious, for the slightest hesitation meant death. The concept of “no mind” his granduncle, and, whenever his father had cared to check up on him, had tried to instill, and his instructors, albeit to a less formal degree. To be ready to strike regardless of pre-planned strategy, regardless of form, to be flowing, to keep a truly open mind. As his poleaxe was locked in with Caden’s sword and he was drawn forward, his body already positioned himself for multiple possibilities, and when the marten disengaged the sword, as subconsciously knew he would to go for a strike, Alwyn saw the moment of opportunity and took it with no hesitation. Before Caden could swing at his midsection, he simply dropped the poleaxe lower, using its hook to wrap around the back of Caden’s feet-and then he pulled, tripping the marten and having him land squarely on his back. All it took then was a slight, quick movement to bring the head spike of the poleaxe straight up to Caden’s throat-what would have been a kill in real combat.

Sweat permeated Alwyn’s face and body at the intense, lightning-fast exchange, but he then tossed aside his poleaxe, having it clatter on the ground, before offering Caden a paw up.

“Excellent form, we can now move onto the next portion. My broadsword vs yours. No time to rest, though, as we would not get it in a real battle.” Alwyn chuckled, although he did glance over at Daniil. Not meant to be a harsh rebuke to his cousin, but Daniil needed to learn to pace himself, to fight like both Caden and him-circle, analyze your opponent, and then go in quickly with great speed and no hesitation, letting one’s training and subconscious take over.