[DUEL] Regents

[Kimaria]

Tapana smiled across at her 'other half', secretly impressed by her fire and determination. That the pair of them had won the votes of their pride was a sign that their people were as fiery and determined as they had ever been. Things might have changed since the days of old but the lions in the desert were unmoving.

It stirred her heart with pride.

"Dear Agni-pariksha," she purred, stepping forwards in acceptance of the challenge. "I was born ready. As were you, I should think." The large female gave the slightest dip of her head and sank into battle-posture, flattening her paws to the ground and bolstering her stance.

Ah, yes, this would be fun.  

[Kimaria]

1/5 - glancing attack
Total: 2

Unfortunately for Agni-pariksha, her fellow regent was ready, leaping to the side to avoid the first of the attacks. A huff of breath left her and the smile renewed on her maw as she span to face her opponent, kicking up a swath of sand as she did so.

She had barely got her paws beneath her again before she lunged in retaliation, flicking up a fore-paw in an attempt to land a good head. The lack of finesse, unfortunately, saw her paw glancing too far.

She let out another breathy chuckle, tail swishing.

 

[Kimaria]

2/5 - Bide
Total - 4

Her hasty attack had left her open, Agni-pariksha's paw connecting hard against her shoulder, knocking a foreleg out from under her and causing her to stagger forwards, struggling to regain her posture before she could be hit again and pinned.

Dropping the offensive momentarily, she pushed off with her backlegs, throwing her weight forwards - and though it looked ridiculously clumsy - she found her paws, twisting back to face her opponent, spitting sand from her mouth.

"Good hit," she complimented briefly, eyes fired up.  

[Kimaria]

3/5 - glancing hit
Total: 6

Tapana smirked, settling her paws more firmly into the sand, tail swishing behind her as if trying to calculate how much power she would need to leap and close the gap. Whether she was calculating it or not, she would never admit, for a moment later and she had sprung aloft.

The gap, it seemed, had proven to much a challenge.

Her swing went wide, missing by the breadth of a whisker as she landed heavily, retracting her paw to ensure she didn't stumble upon landing.
 

[Kimaria]

4/5 - miss
Total: 7

Agni-pariksha's strike was well deserved and true, cutting Tapana a hefty blow across the face that had her staggering sideways across the rough terrain. The large female paused to rub a paw across her nose and snorted as if to clear her nostrils of blood - though none could be seen sputtering forth.

She laughed then, shaking her head. "You caught me well, there, partner." Shaking her head again, a small bead of blood trickled down from her nose. Even now she could hear her old teacher's words ringing through her head. Too much haste. Use more judgement. Blah de blah de blah. It was all true, of course, but some lessons Tapana could never learn when it came to fighting. The heat of the moment caught her blood and she went with her instinct. Instinct worked well against another who had no training in battle but when they did...

Still, it wasn't over until it was over.

She feigned a move to the right then switched to the left, her less dominant paw cutting through the air towards the other regent.  

[Kimaria]

5/5 - glancing hit
total: 9

"Well I am trying, you know," Tapana laughed, wiping at her face again, shifting across the sands to avoid another strike. Another hit on the nose might bring tears to her eyes and she didn't want to be seen crying during their first duel together. After today she was sure there would be many.

Again Tapana danced around a couple of false attacks, yet even when she went in for true, she could only manage a light touch. Her opponent was too quick on her paws! She could pretend that she wasn't really trying that hard, but that would have been false.

"Well if you would just stay still, maybe I could land a hit!" She called out with mock irritation. "No, no, it's too late to come back from this. I concede. The victory is yours, my dear." She bowed her head and took a step back. She was already looking forward to their next clash, even with a smarting nose.