Welcome to Gaia! ::

Sanguine eyes scanned the field, eager for a challenge. She was, sort of maybe, getting a little used to using Balthazar-- her hands were raw underneath the padded gauntlets, and her ankles bruised to hell underneath her boots-- but Clerise felt alive.

{[ You're still absolutely rubbish, you realise this? ]}

"I don't even want to hear it," she said cheerfully, spotting an unfamiliar form on the field. She jogged over to him (as a circus troupe member, Clerise was pretty great at running in boots anyway, so nothing new there), waving at him. Her gauntlet clinked noisily.

"Hey," she said, not really caring that she was distracting him. "I need a sparring partner. Name's Clerise, I'm in life or whatever. Fight me instead of pummeling that poor shitbag of a dummy."

Marcus liked training really. It kept his skills sharp and not to mention, it kept Dis from harassing him about not being used. Overall, training was something he enjoyed. Savored, since it also meant no shity missions. What wasn't like was being jolted out of his focus by a voice he didn't know. That dislike he had however was gone in a second. It was one of lambs, and he grinned at her wanting to her into it.
"Sure you want to spar with me? You did get up rather recently after all."
Are we going to beat on more newbies?
To be fair, she asked.
True, but you're going to beat on her aren't you?
Maybe.
Oh you~

"I need something to do around this ******** place. I'm bored to tears and a half."

Transitioning from the seventy or eighty hour work week of physical activity and movement to one of sometimes sparring and mostly classroom learning was...interesting.

Clerise felt ******** stir crazy-- so it was best to get it out with anyone she could ******** find on the training field. She had a bone to pick and something to prove-- she knew she wanted to be the best, and that she had a long ******** road ahead of her to get there.

People were just stepping stones until then.

Marcus came at her like a bat of hell, his sword aimed right at her goddamned heart. With a grunt, Clerise put Balthazar in front of her, twisting him in front of her and shoving the blade away-- but it still nicked her quite nicely in the thigh even though she'd deflected some of the blow.

Of course, it WOULD be the place between her leotard and her thigh high boots. Of course.

As a move of retaliation, she grabbed Balthazar by one of his grips, fingers clad in metal grasping it firmly. She moved as fluidly as she could, swinging him at full force behind her, in a wide backwards arc as she turned with the ring blade.

{[ So you're not completely useless. Don't let me down now. ]}

Ignoring him, she laughed a little, slightly manic. "Hi. I'm Clerise."

(( [[ hp// 40 - 4 = 36
damage done// 14 - 6 = 8
charges// 1/3 ]] ))

"I don't have any corners to cut," she replies sweetly, spinning Balthazar neatly along her wrist.

"Rebuild a town? Say wha-?" She was interrupted as the blade sliced along her arm, in the space between coat and gauntlet.

"Nice aim," she muttered, dropping the ring blade to swing around her right ankle as she balanced on her left leg, hopping to use the blade in a roundhouse kick as her right leg hit the ground, the blade going at Marcus in an arc.

{[ That was the most pants on head retarded attempt I have ever seen in my life. ]}

Unfortunately, the move was too intricate to really hit him with any force, just barely swinging against him.

Huh. She had just taken him off guard last time, it seemed. Clerise was going to have a harder time than originally anticipated.

(( [[ hp// 36 - 4 = 32
damage done// 7 - 6 = 1
charges// 2/3 (Swift Strikes - 7d4) ]] ))

Clerise jumped back a few moments too late as the sword got her from an unexpected angle, unable to block the incoming swing with the ring blade.

"Christ, you're ambi!" That had stung, some, and the blade had slid nicely against her thigh. It smarted.

"Congratulations, Sherlock, on your brilliant deduction," Clerise crooned, spinning Balthazar on her arm, for a moment as she pondered the best method of attack.

{[ Don't hesitate. Every moment you stay still is another moment he has to attack you-- and he's fast, and not so forgiving. ]}

It spurned Clerise into action: she crouched into a forward lean, swiping outwards with the Captain, swinging him horizontally instead of spinning him on a wrist, the metal sliding in the air smoothly.

"A town! Who the ******** lives here besides us? Lived here, I guess?" She coulda sworn that someone had said it was just them on the island, but her memory was super ******** shoddy. She was probably wrong.

(( [[ hp// 32 - 4 = 28
damage done// 11 - 6 = 5
charges// 3/3 (Swift Strikes - 7d4) ]] ))

Clerise let loose a wild burst of laughter as Balthazar penetrated the shield, giggling quietly to herself even after the appropriate moment had passed. "It's noted, I wish I was-- never could get the left hand to be quite as functional."

The redhead bounced on her heels as they sunk into the sod of the ground, cursing to herself and trying to tread lightly, only walking on the balls of her feet.

"Interesting. I'll have to check it ou--" She let loose a bit of a scream as the blade slid through her own shield, getting her right on the hip-- oh, clever boy. Clever, clever boy.

"This is starting to sting a little," she admitted, a smile still dancing on her lips-- losing was not a problem, because it meant she could learn from the mistakes, learn and improve and succeed.

"Thanks, the acrobat tacked on a moment too late, as she was previously too focused on the stinging wound that Marcus had just bequeathed her. In retaliation, the redhead struck back with a charged swing, spinning Balthazar on her arm as she readied him.

With a staggered throw, Clerise flung the hoop at Marcus, sparks flying from around him. "Balthazar says hi!"

[[ hp// 28-3=25
damage done// 19/2=9.5
charges// 3/3 (Swift Strikes - 7d4) CONSUMED ]]

The other hunter was pretty damn close to winning, at this point. Clerise wasn't one to wuss out, though, and would certainly not start now. Time to stick it through to the bitter end.

"Ugh, that sounds...Kind of ******** awful," she admitted, letting out a harpy-esque shriek as Desidero got HER in the shoulder, and she forcibly scrabbled back, her right arm hurting to move now. ********, tell him thanks, they ********' better for how much," Clerise grunted as she did a spin towards Marcus, swinging the blade with mostly centrifugal force rather than with any of her own strength, "I have to work for the damned things!"


[[ hp// 25-5=20
damage done// 9-6=3
charges// 0/3 (Swift Strikes - 7d4) 1 of 2 CONSUMED ]]

"Nah, for some reason they stuck a technologically impaired girl in Life." It was a ******** mystery to her, really, but she was slowly learning. She could even use that Twatter thing that people were using! It was kind of fun, and kind of awful at the same time.

The slash knocked Clerise clean off her unsteady feet, and she groaned as the impact of ground to back hit her.

It was obvious that she was losing, and could feel her shield being whittled not so subtly away. "Ohh my chhrriistt you are going to have to show me how you pack such a goddamned punch in your swings, holy s**t."

Clerise staggered to her feet once more, looking worse for wear, and let Balthazar rest in the crook of her right elbow, using her left hand to guide him in a horizontal sweep-- with minimal effectiveness. She was really feeling noooot so hot.

[[ hp// 20-9=11
damage done// 9-6=3
charges// 1/3 (Swift Strikes - 7d4) 1 of 2 CONSUMED ]]