[DUEL] Show Me What You Got (Citrabanu x Ran)

[SilverLutz]

Pacing on the dueling sands once more, Citrabanu waited for another opponent. While fighting was something the Firekin did on the daily, Citra found the action of dueling itself quite calming and satisfying on a soulful level. It wasn't the bloodshed, it wasn't the pain, it wasn't even necessarily the joy of victory or the bitterness of defeat. It was all of those things rolled into one and yet different. It was the action of battle, of using his mind and might against the brain and brawn of another skilled warrior. Learning from them, perfecting his own skill... it was all quite invigorating.

And so he waited, eyes moving from lion to lion to see who would step forward to join him on the sands. Someone with the same delight for dueling as him? Or someone that was frustrated and wanted to let off some steam? Either way, Citra would gladly take whoever it was head-on.  

[Seaki]

Ran was aching for a duel. She was a soldier, and she wanted to prove herself. She wasn't as big as the other members, having been born outside the pride. She wasn't sure what these lions ate but they were big. She liked it, though. It made her feel more powerful if she could manage to take a big one down.

She was strong, but so was everyone else here.

She rolled her shoulders, squaring up against another that was aching for a duel. They didn't really speak at the duel started. Only eye contact needed, really. His first blow was barely a hit...

She lunged back at him in hopes to get a full blow on him.


Total: 3
 

[SilverLutz]

Round 1: 2
Round 2: 2
Total: 4

The lioness that approached was one Citrabanu recognized from their joint duties as Soldiers, but he had never caught her name. Her dark eyes were quite striking and he hoped that they'd part ways after this duel on good terms. Perhaps they could join up for a patrol at some point or for another duel later.

His thoughts distracted him and the lioness charged, giving him barely enough time to even swat at her. Although she was smaller than him - he wasn't the largest Firekin in the lands as his father wasn't native to the pride - her smack certainly packed a punch. It was enough to make him fall back a bit to put some space between them. It forced him to withhold any sort of attack but hopefully getting some distance between him and her would allow him to regroup and give as good as he got.

Seaki

 

[Seaki]

She did not quite expect the other to slip right out of her reach after her last blow. She had tried to lunge again but missed completely. It wasn't a surprise, really, but she stepped back to watch him for a moment.

With how this was going, she felt like it could be anyone's game. She shook herself, planning out her next attack.

"Alright, let's go," She said, though mostly to herself, she was sure he would be able to hear her. She awaited his next move. If he came to her, she could probably hit him again, even if that meant getting hit herself.

Total: 4 (3 + 1)  

[SilverLutz]

Round 1: 2
Round 2: 2
Round 3: 3
Total: 7

This time, thankfully, her attack swung wide and Citra had a moment to collect himself. Her muttered encouragement to herself made him smile just a bit and he took her words to heart. The beginning had started off a little rocky for him but he wasn't going to let his false start get him down.

He charged forward with a little snarl to give himself a boost, digging his paws into the sand as he launched himself towards the smaller lioness. Going in so hard and so close would open him up to an attack as well, but he didn't care. Right now he needed to make up for his shoddy start. With a swing of his paw he connected with the female's shoulder, bringing him close but giving him a solid hit.  

[Seaki]

She knew he was gonna hit, and she braced herself for it. It didn't stop the snarl of pain, though, when the contact hit, but it did give her enough of a forewarning to swing her paw out as well to hit him soon after she hit him. She aimed directly for his side, pleased when the contact landed.

Now she would just have to keep up this, without getting hit as much. She stumbled back a bit, but she wasn't that far. He could probably hit her again if he tried, but it also gave her another chance to strike him, too.

Total: 7 (3 + 1 + 3)  

[SilverLutz]

Round 1: 2
Round 2: 2
Round 3: 3
Round 4: 3
Total: 10

Ooh, that stung. While claws generally weren't used in duels she had hit Citra's side so hard he was sure her claws had been scraped against him for just a moment. Not enough to draw blood but enough to make the ache of the smack linger a bit longer. The pain made him grimace but he pushed forward, following her as she fell back, encroaching on her space. He used his larger size to his advantage for the moment as he surged towards her again, this time aiming for her jaw. A solid knock to the head was always good to toss someone off balance and this lioness clearly wasn't afraid of getting up in his face, so he'd need to keep her down and out to win.  

[Seaki]

Apparently Ran hadn't gotten far enough away, because the next blow socked her right in the face. She backed up even further to try to avoid another hit. She needed to collect herself, and she didn't want to get hit again.

The blow to her face made her a tiny bit dizzy, but she got her barrings quickly enough, hoping the attack didn't leave lasting damage. She took a deep breath, hoping she could get in one last blow soon...

Total: 9 (3 + 1 + 3 + 2)  

[SilverLutz]

Round 1: 2
Round 2: 2
Round 3: 3
Round 4: 3
Round 5: 2
Total: 12

His tactic worked and Citra found the lioness backing up again, biding her time to probably let her world stop spinning. He pounced forward to close the gap again and swung for her once more, but this one was a bit misjudged and only lightly swatted her shoulder. Hardly enough to hurt but enough to make him feel like he connected. Still, it left him vulnerable to attack and he knew it was a calculated risk he had to take. No one got ahead in life by being too careful.  

[Seaki]

Ran was glad that the time she took to collect herself worked, because the dizziness went away pretty quickly. He lunged at her, and the hit barely hurt. She swung herself around and swung back at him, trying to land a harsh blow somewhat in revenge for the face blow.

After her hit landed she backed away as quickly as possible to get some distance, just in case another blow was coming. She was exhausted, though. She wasn't quite sure if she could continue. If they did, she would have to concede...

Total: 12 (3 + 1 + 3 + 2 + 3)  

[SilverLutz]

As he thought, the lioness took advantage of his minor slip-up and his proximity to her and landed a rather mind-rattling blow of her own on his temple. He stepped away as he tried to focus on the lioness, seeing two of her for a few moments before his vision settled down. A little smile crossed his maw as he lifted a paw to rub his head, the ache dull but certainly there. He could tell she was tired - he was too - and he figured that would be a good place to call it.

"Well, I'd consider us pretty evenly matched," he said as he lowered his paw and bowed his head for a moment in a thankful way. "Perhaps we'll meet again on another day. I'm Citrabanu," he added as he looked up, golden eyes pleasant and didn't hold a trace of irritation. A tie was just as good as a win in his book because it meant they were both good at their job, and the pride needed Soldiers that were on their A game.  

[Seaki]

Ran puffed a sigh of relief when the battle was called. She straightened up and smiled at the other. "That we are!" She said jovially. It was different dueling to get better over dueling to enter. If either of them had a worse day, one of them would have lost, and she was quite pleased she was able to keep up with him.

"I am Ran. Perhaps we can duel again soon!" She told him. She would be back. Perhaps she would even be able to beat him next time. For now, though, she would rest.