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 Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 8:42 pm
Maybe she'd made one too many comments about Nicodemus still being off since they'd returned from the Haunted House. Maybe she'd given him a funny look in the hallway. Maybe he just wanted to slaughter somebody and Cass's name had been pulled from the 'death to you' hat that he had stashed away in his room.
In a nutshell, Cassandra Norris had been requested by the lead of the Death Hunters and all she could think the entire time she wrapped up the task she'd been up to and gathered herself properly was:
Oh s**t, oh s**t, oh s**t, oh s**t, oh s**t, I'm going to die
Any other thought she tried to have came off as 'You're ********, you're ********, you're ********, you're ********...' and that was exactly how she felt right then. She wasn't even sure if she should have summoned Nicodemus or not as she headed out into the sparring field, but she'd done it anyways, if only to be on top of that task.. that and gripping the handles of her weapon brought a certain sense of ease to the Mist trainee.
Even if it would only stave off pain for so long.
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 9:43 pm
Actually, the reality of the situation was most likely now that Ben was unfortunately gone, Caelius just really wanted to find a moving practice target to beat to an inch of their life for reasons unexplained. Perhaps it was slightly implied that he would have preferred a more experienced sparring target. Perhaps it was also more slightly implied that anyone who actually was experienced was using their experience to give the Death Hunter division leader the widest berth possible.
How ironic that a Mist Hunter trainee, supposedly the most versatile of all the classes, was the one who got caught with their hand in the figurative cookie jar.
However, as Cassandra approached the field that day, looking as stellar as a trainee sentence for death row could look, she would notice that Caelius was not waiting with his weapon in one hand, but simply standing there. Next to what seemed like a simple five-foot metal pole lodged in the grass.
"Five minutes late." Caelius growled, picking up the pole, and moving it to his side. "I was unaware that trainees needed so much beauty sleep."
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 9:52 pm
No weapon.... Cass couldn't help but take a look around suspiciously, waiting for something sneaky to happen for some reason. Oh wait, because sneak attacks were still an option. Nobody had ever said the hunters were noble and she'd noted that calmly.
It was only when Caelius spoke that she winced, but made a point of standing tall despite it, letting it move past her. She was fine, just late. Just late and probably having made triangle man the Death Head more upset... and wielding a pole that could probably still beat her within an inch of her life, she was sure.
"I have you to keep up with, sir, but I won't let it happen again." she said stiffly, in her boots her toes curled up in something resembling terror and it was probably quite easy to see that she was still completely threatened by him. So. Very. Threatened. He was experienced, he was mighty, and she...was a scapegoat. Sweet jesus, she was a scapegoat. Frankly, she just hoped she didn't end up in Dr. H's care for a week after this was over.
This will be good for you, Cassandra. Just don't die and you'll be fine.
<>
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 10:10 pm
THUNK.
The dull end of the pole buried itself less than an inch away from the trainee.
Caelius simply walked over and picked it up, giving Cassandra possibly the most withering expression she had ever faced up close and personal. "When I request your commentary, I shall let you know."
He walked back a few more steps, within good sparring range, still holding the makeshift weapon and not, thankfully, Circe. "Considering how well you took my attack in the Haunted House, I highly doubt I have need for my weapon this morning. And if you don't make a move soon, I will be more than happy to oblige instead."
The very atmosphere seemed to loom heavier as he stood there and waited.
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demon_pachabel rolled 2 8-sided dice:
2, 2
Total: 4 (2-16)
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 10:22 pm
She stood up straighter when the pole came at her, but it took everything to not just retreat right then and reap a punishment later for being a complete coward. No. She was alright...for not. She needed to tough it out and not just bawl because of the stress level. She needed to not lose her head and flip the 'lose your mind' switch in her head either.
Because that would have made it worse. Still, it was a surprise she didn't just plain ol' wet herself when he leaned in to give her the evil-eye, just swallowing, staring back meekly, and nodding. "Yessir." she answered, if the squeak she made was considered such. But even so, it seemed for another minute she was alive.
s**t, attack? She... s**t....her mind raced for a second before Nicodemus pressed the 'point that way, attack' button in her head. Cass didn't even justify the Tonberry with a response, just setting her jaw and moving forward. She felt stupid, to be honest, attacking a strong opponent, and when she missed with a swing of her blade?
Even more so.
She was like a mouse to his Angry death-cat.
HP: You Are/Gonna Die Cass (40/40)
Damage: Can you hurt god?
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Zoobey rolled 2 12-sided dice:
11, 3
Total: 14 (2-24)
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 10:27 pm
He did not even move a muscle as the trainee effectively swung and missed. Perhaps if it had been anyone but Caelius, they would have sympathized a little more on the situation, given Cassandra a small pat on the back, and told her to try again.
Unfortunately it was Caelius. And he seemed even more pissed that she did not hit than if she had actually managed to get a swing in.
Without warning, the pole swung up and slapped her smartly on the back: better veterans called those attacks love bites from the Death Hunter leader. Giant, bruising love bites.
"Don't loose focus trainee, your opponent is here."
HP: ???/???
Damage: 14 - 6 = 8 damage
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demon_pachabel rolled 2 8-sided dice:
5, 7
Total: 12 (2-16)
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 10:39 pm
THWACK She hissed and stumbled when she was hit, but didn't go down immediately. Instead, Cass moved to right herself even with the giant bruising 'love bite' she was receiving for her failure, taking a deep breath and sucking up the wave of pain. At least he hadn't broken her spine.
"Understood." she answered to Caelius's instruction on not losing focus. Trying to not linger on the blow she'd been given, Cass shifted her weight to her other foot and turned, swinging again. Fortunately this time, she had better aim for her target.
Though she was sure she wouldn't be more than a fly on him with her inexperience.
Cass: Is dying (32/40)
Damage: 12-6 = 6
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Zoobey rolled 2 12-sided dice:
6, 4
Total: 10 (2-24)
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 10:44 pm
The swing this time was true, as metal scraped against metal, a sharp rattling noise jarring the impact.
Caelius took most of the impact before taking a step back, letting one of his hands go. If he seemed anything other than mildly disgruntled, his expression did not show as he simply, as if practicing a laid-out routine, moved the pole horizontally, letting the makeshift-weapon's trajectory force the trainee back on even ground.
HP: ??? MINUS SIX/ ???
Damage: 10 -6 = 4
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demon_pachabel rolled 2 8-sided dice:
4, 4
Total: 8 (2-16)
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 10:57 pm
Cass tried to not let it bother her that her own pathetic flailing attempts at attacks against the older hunter were just that: Pathetic. She was like a fly on the a** of a whale, really; useless, there for a moment, and then drowned by the ocean. She needed to work on at least upgrading to a fish or something.
Seriously.
But the fish-upgrade would have to wait as she was hit in he gut with the pole he was toying with her with (she had to assume she was being toyed with, why else would he have called out a trainee?), doubling over, down onto one knee for several moments, wheezing. Oh god, where had her ability to breathe gone? Still, she was definitely fortunate he wasn't just turning her into a bloody pulp...
...
yet.
Forcing herself up, she didn't actually move away from the source of her pain, however, but she did actually put that second hand into play, the gun held firmly in her opposite hand, pointing and pulling the trigger. Her aim really needed some work, however.
HP: 28/40
Damage: Was that the wind I felt? 8 - 6 = 2
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Zoobey rolled 2 12-sided dice:
1, 2
Total: 3 (2-24)
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 11:04 pm
Caelius simply let Cassandra's attack hit as if it were just a breeze as it grazed by, stopping all movement, dropping his 'weapon' entirely.
"Stop ******** with me trainee." His words were slathered in annoyance. "Or did you suddenly forget how to even properly use your weapon?"
The Death Hunter was talking, of course, about her weapon's charged attack.
Damage: 0
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demon_pachabel rolled 2 8-sided dice:
7, 3
Total: 10 (2-16)
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 11:24 pm
"I can't use it, sir." Cass replied, the glow in the hilt of her weapon dimming in response to her words, as though attempting to emphasize what she was saying. "Nicodemus hasn't been functioning at 100% since we got back. I did mention this before when you asked if we had questions." She didn't sound angry (it was hard to try and threaten someone older than you), but there was frustration in her voice. Frustration that she was so weak, frustration that she was working with a weapon that wasn't rolling at 100%.
She'd gone through all five of the trials with a weapon that wasn't in top working order. Perhaps that alone would get her bludgeoned to death. But still, she didn't linger on it before she moved to strike again, moving back to the melee blade.
HP: 28/40
Damage: 4, that is how many seconds you have left to live, Cass.
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Zoobey rolled 2 12-sided dice:
12, 2
Total: 14 (2-24)
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 11:27 pm
It was always a strange sight to see the Death Hunter simply take an attack without blocking, more peculiar because, short of a life-crippling injury, he simply did not care. A veteran's eye could differentiate a glancing blow from a serious one, and simply every single attack the trainee had tried so far had been simply that: glancing blows.
Though Cassandra's attack drew a light cut, as per usual, Caelius simply didn't care, and only moved to pick up his makeshift weapon again. "Weapons only falter when their partner does, trainee." He glanced at her quietly, calcuating. "Shall I test your limits before you remember?"
The attack seemingly coming from nowhere as he shifted positions to collide with the trainee, forcing her back further.
Attack: 14-6= 8
HP ???-10/???
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demon_pachabel rolled 2 8-sided dice:
1, 7
Total: 8 (2-16)
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Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2011 11:53 pm
Well, now she could say she'd drawn blood from God if she lived through this. That was enough for peen points in the trainees, she guessed. But that wasn't exactly where her mind was fastened right then.
Caelius's words were as strong of a blow to her as the weapon she was struck with, her knees buckling. She almost went down again, but it was most likely just sheer will that kept her up, coughing a bit as the soreness spread through her. She'd probably have been curled up on the ground if Nicodemus hadn't been covering her....and yet, thinking of it that way suddenly made her feel guilty.
Was she just using Nicodemus because he was conveniently there?
Frustration, it came back, even as she swung again. "Do it. Push me until I get it, and then push more." A glutton-for-punishment statement, but she hadn't come to the island to half a** her new life.
HP: 20/40
Damage: Caelius used 'don't give a ********'. It's super effective!
8 - 6 = 2
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Zoobey rolled 2 12-sided dice:
4, 5
Total: 9 (2-24)
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2011 12:15 am
A sneer, dismissive.
"What I decide is not up to you." He made the motion to attack again, raising the 'weapon' slightly, and then paused, giving the trainee a particular sort of look, level, if not slightly sadistic. The pole was discarded again - this time scraping past Cassandra in the process of burying itself half a foot deep - as something flickered a brilliant blue-
- And the Death Hunter was holding Circe, in its fully manifested glory. "You do not feel threatened enough." This was a statement not a question. "If you do not recognize Fear, you have no right to master control over it. And for those who don't learn, there is no use for them, is there?"
The weapon hummed in his hand, waiting. "Now, trainee, will you properly use your weapon? I will not hold back next round."
HP: Idek
Damage: 9- 6 = 3
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demon_pachabel rolled 7 4-sided dice:
1, 4, 4, 3, 3, 4, 2
Total: 21 (7-28)
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Posted: Sat Nov 19, 2011 12:36 am
The 'you're ********, you're ********, you're ********' came back into Cass's head at full force, stepping away from the pole (holy ******** ******** ********, how had he even...??), looking at it with shock, then to Caelius with some mix of awe and horror to her name.
Dear sweet jesus. He had just gotten +10 in the respect department and +1000000 in the 'do not piss this man off' department. She probably could have easily died underneath his whims. The scythe was a completely different ball game. She knew of the mark on Gale's neck and the implications of it. Her head felt about 80% less safe in a moment, but none the less, Cass tucked the gun into her belt and moved both of her hands to her melee weapon.
<>
.....
He didn't answer completely, but that familiar presence told her that he hadn't just..retreated from her. It took a moment for the positive reinforcement to come from the being who she was sure lived in a condo inside her left temple. The glow in the handle of the weapon brightened.
A bleeding of runic markings previously unseen on the blade formed, gathering energy into them and Cass pulled the weapon up and swung again.
Cass, how did you miss hitting him?
<>
HP: 17/40
Damage: Cass is dead no matter what, poor girl. Oh, and she can't aim worth a s**t. She missed.
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