|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Legend of Lunaria Captain
|
 Posted: Thu Jun 03, 2010 7:30 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Legend of Lunaria generated a random number between
1 and 11 ...
6!
|
Posted: Thu Jun 03, 2010 7:31 pm
• [ THE OUTCOME OF THIS BATTLE: ] • A draw.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Legend of Lunaria Captain
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jun 03, 2010 8:22 pm
CuiYan did not turn, nor even bid farewell as the girl, Kotone, gathered up her items in a rush and ran away like a defeated puppy. It was not until long after she was gone was the young man able to breath a sigh of relief, believing that finally he could have his space for himself again.
What an ungraceful creature. CuiYan shook his head and thought to himself. He had avoided contact with most students at the academy, only interacting with them when needed. Kotone was the first person who he had to face in private, and the girl dared to trade? From a normal person's perspective, Cui's logic seemed to be extremely twisted: the young man was willing to help others without much regret, yet he refused to be treated on equal ground with others. To accept a trade from a commoner meant just that, lowering himself to the same rank as Kotone, who he deemed as unworthy. If the girl had only request to learn a skill or two from him, Cui may have agreed. But not trade, especially when her side of the deal was clearly not up to par with what she desired from him.
Breathing heavily, the young man decided to push his short encounter out of his head. From the way she left Cui was quite certain the girl would not return. She was not to be kept in his mind. For now, Cui decided that he must resume his training, after wasting quite a bit of precious time with the not-so-professional stalker.
"Ha..."
Allowing his muscles to relax, Cui closed his eyes, pulling all thoughts away from his mind. No one would be disturbing him any longer, his training had began.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Jun 04, 2010 6:47 pm
Yes indeed, Kotone had times when she was spontaneously nosy and right now was one of those times.
Just right after exiting the other end of the alley, Kotone suddenly could not help the urge to take backward steps into it again and lean against the wall again as though in stealth as her eccentric mind began to cook considerations. First off, she considered that she really, really wanted to see the swordsman in action, so much so that she next considered begging him to give her permission to do so. However, Kotone quickly discarded begging and even simply asking for a favor without offering to reciprocate as an option because she felt that she would only be a burden if she received without giving in return. So, if she had something she could offer that the other party may be interested in, she wanted to make such an exchange. However, there was nothing she offered that interested said swordsman. And actually, a part of her had been expecting that the green-haired Lunarian would decline trading with her. In fact, she would often have a tugging sensation of worry at the back of her mind that her offers were lacking.
In her mind, she was a burden and she did not want to become more of a burden by issuing queries for favors that entail only her receiving, she did not want to be more selfish. She felt selfish because she pursues what she wants and lets down the expectations of those who have already given her so much and keep giving to her so selflessly. She was not lady-like enough. She was not competent enough as a person. She was not strong enough as a whole, physically and non-physically, such as in body and spirit. She was entirely lacking is what she thought of herself. Though she was never forced into doing anything or being anything, she would feel that she was not living like her mother in particular wished for her. Whenever she would cause her mother to worry and criticize her, Kotone would feel sad and would be reminded of thinking of herself as inadequate and troublesome as an individual.
But she had long since made up her mind that she did not want to continue feeling like this. She did not want to continue being a burden for her whole life. She wanted to keep growing and growing, bettering and bettering herself. And what this desire and energy to change has been channeling itself into most has been her enjoyment of climbing up in skill as one who wishes to wholeheartedly embrace an identity as a fighter, one that was hers alone, and in so doing, she will in turn be putting forth more effort into her attempt at building more confidence in herself as well.
And this resolve was what was fueling her, moving her. This was why she was running back to where she last saw the green-haired swordsman with the idea that struck her. Trading was a no. Begging and just plain asking while offering nothing in return were both out of the running for her as well. So, what else was there? What else was left to try?
She stopped running only when she had reached a distance several meters from the swordsman, catching her breath for a moment before addressing him. However, when she was about to speak, her mind went blank again then, at a loss for words and she struggled inside herself to kick her mind back into being able to function at constructing sentences of her thoughts to say.
Her physical status was in a bit of a better state it seemed, as her body appeared to remember what she decided or at least remembered to be cautious within the proximity of this green-haired Lunarian based on the final memory he left her with before she had walked off.
She was now shivering ever so lightly and she was wondering at the moment how she had managed walking away with her back turned as the icy memory rushed back to her of him earlier. But at the same time, her body was also braced with alertness. "Umm," this syllable shook with her voice that carried it, but she forced herself to steady the rest of her speech. "Umm, sir..?" Kotone questioned for the swordsman's attention.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Jun 19, 2010 6:04 pm
Calm down, let yourself be free of thoughts. Take deep breathes and feel the natural circulation of your energy within your body. Follow its path, and guide it, then allow yourself to release such energy without burden, without restraint...
As swiftly as wind blew across the rustling leaves, the green haired young man drew his sword, his wrist twisted gracefully as the sharp weapon danced in his presence. Cutting through the air CuiYan enjoyed the sound of his movement, sharp, precise, and most importantly beautiful. If he had to choose, sword had always been his favorite weapon. A sword was in no way as destructive as axes, nor as flexible as bows, but it had the most aesthetic presence, one that called out to the young man's soul, one that Cui found most consistent with his fine self and what he considered most fair of all. It was his love for sword that encouraged him to keep training, and enjoy the training, and made him see his training as a way to relax instead of a task to be done. He loved swordsmanship, his flawless sword dance, the way wind moved around, and the sound----
Only the sound didn't please him at the moment. The young Lunarian froze suddenly in the middle of his dance like a statue. His eyes were closed, but the frown was clearly becoming visible. Beginning from just a moment ago the sound of the wind no longer felt right to him. Something was off, and it wasn't hard for Cui to find out what it was.
There was another person here. Again.
Recoiling to his starting stance, Cui stared at the intruder, who obviously wanted her presence to be known by actually calling out to the young man. At first, the look he sent to the intruder was that of a killer glare, but the expression only flashed in split of a second before his usual masked smile returned to his face. Cui agonized the girl. How can he not, when she was just here a moment ago? He should be shocked, even horrified a the fact the girl dared to return. It appeared that Cui had underestimated Kotone's stupidity, now she was...rude! Did he make a point that he didn't want her to be here? Cui thought Kotone understood, but it appeared that he was mistaken.
Blinking a few times to make sure he was not just seeing an illusion, the young man folded his arms, his sword withdrew into its sheath. "Miss Kotone?" Cui titled his head, half feigning curiosity. His tone was that of an innocent child, yet there was a hidden sarcasm hidden within. "Did you forget something?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jun 20, 2010 8:33 pm
Beautiful. Everything from his stances to the strokes of his sword. Kotone knew she would never forget these impressive visions she was witnessing before her now. Had she just imagined the coldness that accompanied this elegance earlier, she asked herself, questioned and doubted her memory. Her mind was unsure. But her physical state remained tensed regardless of the uncertainty that crossed her mind. But this, too, was likely influenced in part by another factor, one she was currently overlooking: her recklessness.
And then again, she felt it, this chill. It pierced the atmosphere fiercely and sharply and then lulled. Her eyes were struck with bewilderment, but her watchfulness did not falter. His tone just now was not the same cold tone that again flashed in her memory but his glare a moment before was not missed by her. It was not just her imagination, she was now quite sure.
Still, there was a struggle going on in her mind. Kotone was further struggling with her self-doubt. Though the insecurity if she had only imagined the coldness of the Lunarian before her came and left after she finally settled on a conclusion, it was replaced with another nagging question in her mind. Did she overlook other options, better ones than the one she was acting on now?
Wallowing in her uncertainties was no good, she chastised herself inwardly, and he was currently addressing her. She did not want to give him a delayed answer. So despite still being unsure, she proceeded with the decision that led her back here.
"Did you forget something?"
"No, sir, I didn't forget anything," she replied while shaking her head. "I.." her voice about to hesitate again, she bowed at her waist to him and then when she had returned to standing upright, narrowed her eyes to focus on the swordsman once more. Shrugging her backpack from her shoulders, it slipped and fell with a mild thud behind her. Taking a step forward, she cleared her throat softly trying to make sure she spoke with more steadiness, "I challenge you to a duel."
This time she drew her staff from her right side with an upward pull with her right hand and smoothly with a flip of her wrist, shifted her hold on her weapon while bringing both her hand and staff down and at a ready by her side.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2010 6:23 am
"...ah?"
The young man was ready to reject anything that the foolish girl threw at him. Indeed, if she were to find any weak excuses or even beg him now Cui would refuse with brutality. His words of rejection, however, was stuck at this throat. The young man's expression froze in between his usual empty smile and shock, his mouth slightly opened, only no further words came out other than a small voice of question. He questioned the girl's sanity, the extent of unpleasantness Kotone could possibly bring. Most of all, Kotone always seemed to possess the talent of surprising Cui with her reckless words and actions. And there he thought she'd have at least the decency to know her place---but he could now see that he was wrong.
Still, finding the situation quite ridiculous and unbelievable, the young man shook his head, scanning the girl head to toe in curiousity. He wanted to find if there's any problem with Kotone's brain, not that anywhere from her physical body could show as much. "Why do you suppose I should a agree to such a challenge?" He chuckled, mumbling the words more to himself than to the challenger. In other words, why should he waste his precious training time sparring with a girl who he saw as inferior? The sheer stupidity of the situation forced Cui to look at the girl more carefully. She was no different than when he first looked at her, and his opinion of her certainly did not change. However, Cui could not help but to find himself amused at the situation, and failed to decide if he should be angry or should be humored. The way Kotone stood with her staff meant that she was certainly serious. Arrogant aside, Cui had the skill as a fighter, and could easily tell the challenger was experienced, or at least trained in combat. He raised an eyebrow, and realized that it had never occured to him that Kotone was a student just like he was at the academy. And there he thought only the most skilled and talented individual like him deserve the privilege to study here---
Well, that was a disappointment, the thought that he was stuck with a bunch of mundane people even if he was in the academy. But the thought was pulling him away from the situation, Cui realized, and looked back at the challenger. Then it had occurred to him, perhaps accepting her challenge was not a bad idea. After all, if he could defeat her easily, the dull-minded girl would finally be able to leave him alone?
"On another thought," The young man softened his tone, which now sounded cheerful and upbeat. "I think I will accept the challenge...if, that is, you will agree to leave me after the duel."
Cui did not mention the condition was under either winning or loosing. He didn't need to, the fight would end quickly.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Jun 21, 2010 9:17 am
"Why do you suppose I should a agree to such a challenge?"
Sadness mixed into her eyes at this. But, somehow she still managed to exude recklessness, recklessness, and more recklessness from her being as she kept her gaze locked onto him. It seemed as though she was set to fight at all costs, which wasn't exactly false either. Kotone was of the mind that she was willing to learn from every second or less that she could last in a fight. And she would give each and every fight her all, hoping that in however long a time it took to fight her, regardless of the outcome, her opponent can also gain from it even the slightest improvement on their part as well. Even if it took less than a second to deal with her, whether subdue her in battle or shake her off their tail in a chase, she would be grateful and take every such experience to analyze and grow from even a little bit.
She was about ready to warn him of her decision to attack, push through with her declared strike, and attempt to force a fight. The voice in her head questioning this thought she was considering she had began to classify as insecurity.
But upon his next words, she perked up immediately.
"Yes, I shall abide by your terms, thank you," she replied excitedly, unable to help smiling as toothily as she was at the moment, not catching that the swordsman hadn't specified whether the condition was for winning or losing in her fervor. "Then, sir," she spoke again, her voice now entwined with gusto, "here I go." Her features then took on a focused determination as her feet dug into the ground in preparation. And then, she charged, straight at him, twisting her body to the right in the process, aiming to ram into him with as much force as she could muster to impact him with her left side.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2010 7:44 am
Cui almost laughed at the girl's demeanor. Where was her manner before the fight? Kotone, in Cui's eyes, definitely did not know the rules on when to greet people with what kind of attitude. On another thought, perhaps that was her way of dropping his guard? No, Cui would not be falling to her trick, even if the girl was in no way on equal grounds with him. He needed to finish this as fast as possible, so that he could return to his peace.
Seeing as Kotone charged, Cui simply moved aside, his hand drawing out of the sword in its entirety in front of him as a way of defense. He thought she was going to use her staff, but she didn't. Instead, Kotone resorted to tackling as her initial move. Cui frowned at her motion for two reasons. One, the young man disapproved of her move. In Cui's opinion no person should use her entire body as a weapon against the enemy. It was risky, but most of all barbarian and untactful. Second, the way Kotone moved was very familiar to him. In fact, he had just learned it a few days ago in the academy. Then a thought suddenly hit him: perhaps Kotone was on equal grounds, being trained in similar techniques! The latter thought displeased the young man greatly, which in turn disturbed his movement. His original plan of stepping aside and simply let the girl suffer from her own momentum backfired, as Cui was a split second too slow in his dodge, resulting in his shoulder colliding with Kotone's force. It was only a brace, but Cui could feel the discomfort surging up from his side.
"Urg..." Cui grunted in frustration. He was able to avoid most of the force, but was nonetheless annoyed at the fact that he wasn't able to dodge it completely. The girl was quite skilled, and Cui was finding himself disliking her even more. Despite the pain the young man swung his armed hand as fast as he could, his sword still sheathed, at Kotone's back. After a tackle, Cui predicted, it would be difficult for the girl to keep balance and turn. In other words, this was the best time to strike.
"I see an opening!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Jul 12, 2010 2:20 pm
"Ugh," was the slight grunt of pain she emitted upon the collision. Kotone's attack was a double-edged sword. However, she only just grasped this concept fully when her attack had partially hit. Most likely it was her recklessness that made her overlook this possibility that was now reality as the side of her body that had impacted the swordsman was now throbbing painfully. She had sensed the upcoming retaliation of her opponent. Her senses have been gradually improved to its current not at all outstanding but fairly satisfactory caliber. Her mind was able to process that the option of trying to turn and block with her staff would be difficult given the challenge of having to counteract her current speed and she was doubting herself if she could pull it off. Thus, her doubtful mind at that moment resulted in her failing in making a decision and thus any reaction to counter this move of her opponent.
"Ahhg," was the sharp gasp that left her chest as she was thrown forward further by the impact of the swordsman's weapon. So now to make matters worse, the swordsman's next attack had hit her hard on her back. She had the lingering momentum of her charge to thank but only for slightly dampening the impact of the still-sheathed sword striking her. The swordsman's strike did give her momentum to work with, however, as her eccentric mind proposed a responding move. She knew she could possibly, easily, quickly lose consciousness upon receiving even just one hit and so she struggled to will herself that she would remain conscious as long as she could. But could she pull through with this aim? Insecurity persistently wished to win her over.
Rather than cutting off the additional momentum applied to her, she used it to continue to dash forward, persevering in not stumbling onto the ground. A tree was before her. Could she pull off this move? Insecurity and recklessness mingled together. She ran up said tree and then pushed off into a back-flip. However, her insecurity had succeeded in distracting her in one thing: her aim. She was going to miss her target, she knew while in mid-air. And, she did miss. She landed face to face to the swordsman with only a few feet between them.
Consciousness, I've got to keep my consciousness even for just a bit longer.. Kotone was still struggling in fighting her insecurity and self-fulfilling prosphesy that would accompany it.
What did Kotone specialize in? The answer is: her eccentric moves. Her quirky mind provided her with her next move upon her landing after her attempted kick that missed. During the crouching phase of her landing, she planted one end of her staff against the ground at a diagonal between her thighs. Thus, she mounted her staff like a witch would a broom-stick, planning to request the earth's aid in strengthening her blow with granted momentum. While her left hand held her staff as steady as she could in her shaky state after receiving hits with her not at all stellar defense, she formed a fist with her right hand. "Extend!" Her staff then elongated and carried her toward the swordsman as she sent her fist flying toward her opponent's stomach as well.
However, her aim was off as her battle for maintaining consciousness somewhat affected her aim. So instead of her fist, her staff's end was flying toward where she was aiming at said swordsman's abdomen.
Kotone's eyes were squinting as she was still adamant in trying to hold on to her consciousness. Can I manage to knock him out with my fist so we both lose consciousness? Her reckless and insecure thoughts persisted their internal battle inside her.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Oct 09, 2010 1:16 pm
The young man grinned his teeth and breathed in sharply, making out what it sounded like a hissing noise. Kotone did not turn back even after being hit, which was surprising. For a moment Cui thought the girl had fainted from his single blow with the seethed sword. It was, however, not the case. The young man turned, curious at the sound his opponent was making, and witnessed in time the spectacle of Kotone bouncing back using the impact of momentum, the very force that Cui had given when his attack landed. The young man stared at the girl's actions with surprise. Should he dodge this attack? If he did, surely Kotone would have her face eaten by dirt the way she plunged at him. On the other hand, if he decided to counter the attack with full force he might be able to break a few bones in his opponent, perhaps rendering her unconscious.
It seemed, to Cui, no matter which way he chose, Kotone would be the only person who'd suffer. He smiled and decided upon the latter for a quicker ending. Hitting a girl was not his favorite activities, but it had to be done to get this annoying stalker out of his way...
Except the plan didn't go as well as he had hoped. Cui did not expect Kotone's staff to have the ability to extend. Now, there were two attacks he had to pay attention to, and he was not given the time to think up another strategy. Kotone's fist was aiming at his face, while the staff, the bigger threat, was aiming at a place lower and harder to protect. Cui was in a state of chaos, with the situation out of his hand and out of his capability, especially now that he had the stance to counter, not to avoid.
"Curses---" The young man muttered to himself under his breath. It seemed that taking a considerable amount of damage is unavoidable. But, at the very least, Cui was ready to attack again. Clenching at his weapon the young noble flung the sword from his side upward, forming a gracious uppercut in front of Kotone's face. Unfortunately, his action left his abdomen wide open for the staff. Cui felt a sharp pain as the end of the staff collided with his body, the force effectively pushing him backward even with his feet firmly stabled to the ground. Cui's other hand was immediately placed on the spot to sooth the pain, yet, it was still enough to make the swordman bend over.
Cuiyan refused to fall, because falling simply meant defeat. If the staff was a bit sharper he had no doubt that it would have poked a hole through his skin. Even right now, he could already imagine the big bruise on his stomach if he were to check on it later.
...well, at least the spot was a bit higher than his more precious part.
Despite the silly thought, the young man did not pull his attention away from the girl. He wasn't sure if his counter-attack had landed. However, Cui had a vague feeling that if the battle went on, he'd suffer a whole lot more.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2011 11:42 am
As Kotone expected, he was fast. But even having expected so, she was still in awe of his quick motions and even only had milliseconds of a chance to be surprised. Eyes widening at the execution of his counterstrike, she responded with a fast spring backward, landing staggeringly before her knees promptly buckled but falling only halfway. Her breathing was sharp and labored, but her posture and expression as she shifted low on her feet with the support of her free hand on the ground could be compared to that of a wild animal, ready to go for the pounce.
White speckles of light appeared and disappeared in her vision for a moment before her eyes blinked several times in quick succession and her head shook in a short quick jerk of a motion to make the dots go away. She wanted to curse her physique’s poor defense, but she refrained from voicing choice words that bubbled their way into her awareness. Her body would not let her forget the intensity of his inflicted blow to her back as the very present pain of it retained a feeling of freshness that continually threatened to take her consciousness as it fought against her willpower. She’d managed to dodge his counter, coming a way with a fine inch-long cut on her check. Such a cut was not at all new to her, but the familiar prickling of pain was still as fiery hot on her face as she remembered. How even this among small cuts managed to hurt so much, she didn’t know how, but was very curious.
Just as she started springing forward for another charge, however, she was deterred and even began being carried backward and further steps away from her opponent. “Time’s up,” one of the two of her bodyguards who wasn’t carrying her and that suddenly intervened informed her matter-of-factly.
“No, wait, please,” she squirmed adamantly, trying to free herself though her efforts were in vain. “Sir, I’m so sorry, let’s fight again some other time,” was what she called out to the swordsman before she was taken back home, persistent at her struggle the entire of the way. Only now did she recall her mother’s warning that if she wasn’t back in class after a time, it was to be considered an intention to skip, and she would be forcefully brought home.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
