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Post by Richter Abend on Jan 26, 2011 14:35:41 GMT -6
Richter was quite surprised by Clair's quick response to his attack. He'd have thought knocking the pegasus knight's lance aside would have pushed her off balance, but she managed to retreat from his blow and direct the force of his punch into a strike against him by twisting her lance around. Quite ingenious, actually. Clair was showing great adaptability and a strong mastery over her weapon.
But it wouldn't work. Using his forward momentum, Richter dropped to the ground, landing squarely on his hands and feet, and ducked under Clair's sweep, the butt of her lance grazing he back. Quickly after the blow had followed through, Richter kicked his sword with his foot, sliding the the blade up to his hand. But the rebel commander couldn't stop there. The further away Clair was, the larger the advantage she had. He'd have to keep pushing.
The Ilian swordsman swung his left leg around in a sort of sweeping trip kick, then, gripping his blade, jumped to his feet and pushed his attack. One arm covering his jaw, he brought his sword arm up, and using the momentum from the leap, swung the blade at Clair's chest in an upward slice.
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Post by Clair Feldsky on Jan 27, 2011 22:12:10 GMT -6
Clair was astonished when Richter dropped clean out of the way of her attack. Unfortunately, with both sides of her weapon now on the same side of her body, it would be a bit more difficult to maneuver back around. She'd have to-
And then Richter was pressing inside her guard. How did he get so fast? He threw a leg out, trying to sweep her, but she just barely managed to jump out of the way in time. He still caught a portion of her feet as she leapt out of the way, knocking her off balance. By the time she'd recovered, all she saw was her Commander's blade coming up at her in a vertical slash as he drove in. As quick as she could, she moved to intercept the attack, trying to catch the blow on the shaft between where she gripped her lance, and -Clang!
She was rewarded for her lack of speed with a loud clash on her armor, as she fell backwards from her Commander's blow. After a moment, she realized that he'd just knocked her clean over. If she was going to continue, she needed to get back up, but she wasn't as fast as Richter had been.
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Post by Richter Abend on Jan 28, 2011 14:45:46 GMT -6
The commander's blow had connected, knocking the pegasus knight off of her feet. Perfect. Richter had the superior speed, strength, and reach. If Clair had shown him everything she had, then she shouldn't be able to rebuff his assault. However, she had surprised him up to this point. He'd have to make sure he didn't get caught off-guard by anything clever, lest he end up flat on his face again.
Richter pushed forward, moving over his fallen opponent. He could end this now if he could get Clair to submit. Shooting his sword forward, he attempted to pin girl down by the chest with his sword.
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Post by Clair Feldsky on Jan 29, 2011 13:03:38 GMT -6
Just as Clair started to get back up, she felt herself slammed back down into the arena's surface, pinned by Commander Richter's blade on her breastplate. She'd not been able to block it, as the only place she'd have been able to shunt his attack would have been down, into her unprotected stomach. In a real battle, she'd be dead right now, and she knew it.
Clair let her head rest back on the ground, and sighed up at Richter. "... You win again, Commander." She was disappointed at losing, after having disarmed her commander, but it was hard to be upset for the same reason. She'd managed to disarm her Commander.
"Now give me a hand up, will you?" The Pegasus Knight reached up an arm, waiting for her commander to pull her up. He had been relentless in his assault. It was his greatest strength, yet also could prove dangerous against the wrong opponents. She, obviously, was one of the right opponents.
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Post by Richter Abend on Jan 29, 2011 23:54:34 GMT -6
Richter just chuckled slightly, sliding his blade off of Clair's breastplate. Yes, he'd won, but Clair had been quite the opponent. The commander didn't know many of the intricacies of wielding a lance, having never used one himself, but he'd fought plenty, and Clair was definitely one of the better ones. Heck, she had even disarmed him. In their troop, that was quite the feat.
Squatting slightly, he gripped the pegasus knight's hand and hoisted her to her feet. Wiping a bit of dust off of her shoulder, he nodded approvingly. "That was some fancy lance-work, Feldsky," said Richter, switching into his military tone. "I'm impressed."
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Post by Clair Feldsky on Jan 30, 2011 1:48:25 GMT -6
Richter hoisted Clair to her feet, dusting her off a bit as she stood up. She returned the favor, laughing softly while brushing at a clump of dirt on his shoulder. She was responsible for that.
"Thank you, Commander. Things have certainly changed since back at Salvation Point, haven't they? Your sword-craft has improved quite a bit as well, if you don't mind me saying so."
Clair stooped to the ground, and picked up her lance from the ground, propping it up in her grip once she had stood back up to her full, small stature. She craned her head up towards him.
"Do you ever think of those times, Richter? They're among some of my most important memories."
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Post by Richter Abend on Jan 30, 2011 23:22:59 GMT -6
OoC: Richter only has pants on ATM
Richter, shivering a bit as the cold air finally caught up with him, sheathed his sword and strode over to his shirt and jacket. Slipping them on sleeve by sleeve, he nodded his head. A few soldiers were clapping in the background over the match, but the men quickly dispersed to their own business.
"Of course I do," replied the commander, straightening his jacket. "I'd have to be brain dead not to." Richter let his mind wander a bit, something he normally tried to stop himself from doing. He remembered walking up to the Herald, just a face among the crowd. However, when he spoke up, his fate had been sealed. He just might have not realized it at the time.
"Do you look back fondly?" asked the Ilian swordsman.
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Post by Clair Feldsky on Feb 2, 2011 21:37:36 GMT -6
OoC: ... He's probably very cold then. I forgot about that. Edited.
Clair shook her head at her Commander's shivers. Fighting shirtless, in the Illian cold. Really, what was he thinking? She moved over to the side of the arena with him, and began wiping down her weapon with a towel she found there.
"For the most part. It's the road that's made me what I am. It would be foolish to not value it." Clair stopped talking for a moment, looking off into the distance that was the nearby tent cloth. "I guess there are times I'm not very fond of though. I was really bad when I started. At everything." Those memories agitated her, even if they were in the past.
Annoyed, she tossed the towel to Richter without looking where she was aiming. ...Perhaps there actually was more bothering her than her pathetic skills when she'd first started.
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Post by Richter Abend on Feb 4, 2011 20:35:21 GMT -6
Richter's head tilted a little as Clair's words piqued his interest.
"Everything?" he asked lightly. "How can anyone be bad at everything?" Perhaps it was just the way his brain worked, but as dark as his moods could get, Richter could always find something he was good at to focus on. For the past six years it had been his skill with the blade. Now it was his role as leader to his men. Who knows what it would be tomorrow. True, he tended to get a bit obsessive at times, but it was better than despair.
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Post by Clair Feldsky on Feb 4, 2011 20:56:04 GMT -6
"Well, I could hardly manuever on Corona. I couldn't fight from his back very well... If you remember I fell off of him while in flight. Saved you from a nasty cut as well." Clair laughed at the sheer and utter craziness of that. She'd fallen off quite a few times during her initial training. Not as much as her mother had, but still quite a bit.
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Post by Richter Abend on Feb 6, 2011 15:48:15 GMT -6
"Everyone falls off once or twice," replied the pink haired ex-mercenary, a slight shrug rolling off of his shoulders. His gaze turned upwards as he recalled a few memories. "My sister, Mary, she used to be a great pegasus rider. Not nearly as good as you are now, but she was quite talented. Whenever my mother wasn't keeping our house from being destroyed by three rowdy young men, my sister would have her out behind our house teaching her how to fly on my mother's old, tired pegasus. I don't think either of them minded very much, though. My mother never got the chance to fly anymore, and neither did Verea."
Richter gave Clair a quick nod. "Verea was her pegasus." He chuckled. It was happy, but sad, like a whisper of a happier time lost to the wind. "You should have seen the amount of times she landed face first in the snow. By the time she came in every day, Mary's face would be pink from near frostbite. But that didn't stop her. She'd be out riding Verea the very next morning before I'd even managed to pull myself out of bed." It might sound early, but it isn't particularly so. Richter had never been an early riser. Sure, on mercenary campaigns Richter would have been up at the crack of dawn with the rest of the men, but when he was at home, his mother would usually have had to beat him out of bed with a pillow before he rolled out of bed to help his mother around the house while his brothers were away.
The commander shook his head and sighed. "But that dream ended abruptly enough," he said, practically gasping, trying to tie up the end of his tale before it went any further; before he was forced to remember anything else. "But what's important is that she never gave up. And neither did you, and look where that's put you. No knock-kneed trainee would have come through the battles you have alive."
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Post by Clair Feldsky on Feb 7, 2011 1:55:04 GMT -6
OoC: I can't remember if Clair knows about Richter's past or not. I think she does, but I'm not positive.... I'm just gonna say she does, as I don't feel like reading through our entire career tonight. lol Besides, it's possible that she heard of the Abends' fate from elsewhere. Anywho....
Clair grew attentive as Richter started speaking of his past life, though she not in the way some would, staring straight at him, scrutinizing him during his story. Instead, she stood nearby, face half tilted down, and at an angle from him. She smiled a bit. It was good to hear him talking about happier times. Even if it did end in sadness.
His tale had brought her own family to mind. "Oh... family. I've not even contacted my parents since I left Illia.... They probably think I'm dead." She was certain her parents were alright. They always seemed so strong to her. As strong as Richter seemed.... She was really going to be in for it, she realized.
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Post by Richter Abend on Feb 7, 2011 3:48:04 GMT -6
"Well you should visit them next time you get the chance," replied Richter. "I haven't even sent word of my existence to Mary since I left Ilia." He shook his head disappointingly, placing extra emphasis on the word "I". "That's at least seven years. I...can't even remember how old that would make her. Twenty four I think..." The commander let his gaze fall on the horizon, his eyes glazing over.
"My village isn't even that far from here, but it might as well be halfway across Elibe." Richter stared pensively at the mountains, his mind miles away, before snapping back to reality. He turned his attention back to Clair. "Tell me about your parents. I can't say I know much about your life before you joined my unit."
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Post by Clair Feldsky on Feb 11, 2011 0:44:30 GMT -6
Seven years, and his sister didn't even know if he was alive anymore? That was a long time. Clair wouldn't let herself make that mistake.
Clair grew a bit self conscious. She wasn't very experienced at sharing this part of her life. "Well,...there's not a whole lot to tell, really. My parents were stationed in Arphen for the last few years, during my training. Their units kept the roads clean of bandits, and hunted down some of the larger groups every now and then. I didn't hear about it very much though. Too busy learning to fly." That and marching drills. Sometimes it still seemed like her feet were aching when she recalled those days.
"My dad's name is Roderick, but most everyone just calls him Rod." Clair made a small smile, relaxing a bit with thoughts of her parents. "He's probably the best Bowmen in Arphen. When I watch him shoot, it's like he has all the time in the world. And then it's like his target runs straight into the arrow. I've watched seen him do the same with ballistae as well, and That's just his marksman skills." He also happened to be a deadly sword, versed in the arts of the sacaen fighters.
"My Mom's name is Hera Feldsky. Actually, the Feldsky name has a bit of a history to it. She's the one that earned it." Clair laughed. "Not all of it is good either." Her mom wasn't proud of this story, but Clair didn't mind sharing it with her Commander, if he wanted to hear it.
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Post by Richter Abend on Feb 12, 2011 2:20:35 GMT -6
Well, Clair had been the first Feldsky Richter had heard of, but apparently Clair's parents were their own miniature legends. The commander wasn't sure if he was supposed to know who they were and his tunnel vision focus had gotten the best of him again, or if Clair's parents were more on the local legend level. He'd hope it was the latter.
"Can't say I wouldn't mind hearing a thing or two about your mother," inquired Richter. "It's got to be an interesting story. After all, she is your mother."
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