the Rift


[JUDGED] Spiritus Khayyam (Open Spar)

Destrier Posts: 180
Outcast atk: 5 | def: 7.5 | dam: 7.5
Stallion :: Equine :: 16.3hh :: 16 HP: 65.5 | Buff: ENDURE
Suli :: Common Green Dragon :: Fire Breath & Merlin :: Plain Black Dragon :: Frost Breath Dingo
#1
Destrier
Since my return to the Edge, the wounds marring my barrel and the sides of my mouth had begun to heal. No longer did gnats gather to feast upon them, as they had scabbed over and on the smaller cuts, black hair had already started to spring and cover them. My weight was not quite where it had been nearly a year ago, what with Ivan holding nourishment back as punishment, but with the grass growing lush throughout the Edge and all around it, it would soon be a thing of the past.

Although I no longer held the title of Wingleader, I continued to hold my head high as I resumed the early morning and late night patrols I'd so often taken upon myself before my year-long absence. It was a troubling sight to see the glass wall in such a dilapidated state any time I found myself looking at it, recalling the strenuous hours and unyielding effort put forth by all who had worked on it. I still had yet to learn of what we would be doing to prepare it, if we even would at all, and when; but until then, our borders were far less secure than they had been during the wall's short life, and I intended to keep the family I had abandoned safe at any cost once more.

But there was no doubt that I was out of practice. For the past year, I had served under the cruel hand of man, carrying him through battle after bloody battle. Fighting other equines was a whole different strategy, one where you had no direction from another, no guidance, and could put no trust in anyone but yourself. If I had any hope of truly protecting my family from threats, then I would once again need to hone my abilities.

"Me too!" Suddenly came Suli's voice, the emerald landing suddenly and lightly upon a low hanging branch near just yards away. Her mouth was stained crimson, a clear sign that she had just finished off whatever had been on the menu for lunch. Exhaling heavily, I shook my head and gave her a stern look. Perhaps it was the father in me, but I was apprehensive to have her fighting at my side. She was my best friend, my family, my daughter... and the thought of her being harmed or even killed was one I could barely even process. Still, she was no longer a hatchling, and I knew her well enough to know she would go flying into battle with me the first chance she got.

"Fine," I said at last, brows furrowed deeply and voice clearly hesitant, "But you had better be careful."

Moving on a bit further, I eventually found myself in a substantially clear area, with only a few loblolly's stuck here and there, as well as a few rocks, but it was otherwise flat with hock-length grass. The sun was near the middle of the sky, and so no matter which way I or my foe were facing, neither of us would be deterred by the position of the sun unless they be a Pegasus. Drawing to a halt with Suli taking perch in a nearby tree, I called out for a willing opponent; be they the current Wingleader, a protector like myself, another ranking member or even an unranked member of the Edge... I would be happy if somebody came forward. "Edge!" Deep voice rumbled out, accent curling just ever so slightly, "Would anybody be up for a spar? I fear my abilities have diminished."

"bloop"

[ooc - 601 words, opening post.
Setting is somewhere in the central part of the Edge. Area is mostly open save for a few trees and rocks here and there, and it is high noon!]
looking for heaven
found a devil in me
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You may attack and use magic on Des at any time for any reason.

HP: 66.5

Kahlua the Sunshower Posts: 662
Outcast atk: 5.5 | def: 9.5 | dam: 4.5
Mare :: Equine :: 15.3hh :: 9 [Orangemoon] HP: 65 | Buff: NOVICE
Khan :: Common Blue Dragon :: Frost Breath Sevin
#2
KAHLUA
The painted queen wandered aimlessly through the Edge, her head hung low and her familiar smile all but gone from her bald face. Her friends and healed and consoled her, weeks had passed since Aurelia had been banished from the Edge, but Kahlua's heart was still broken. No matter how many nights she went to sleep, no matter how many days she woke and watched the sun travel across the sky, nothing seemed to get better. The thousands of pieces that lay shattered in her chest kept the girl from doing anything but moping and meandering. The smiles of her friends did nothing to cheer her, thoughts of the quest she had been placed only made her sick, the idea of facing her herd just made the girl want to fall over and cry. She was an emotional wreck and she didn't know how to make herself better.

Honestly, she didn't want to make herself better. She deserved this pain.

A call through the air caught the girl's attention, momentarily causing her to lift her head. The voice was... familiar and calling out to her family. Destrier. She hadn't known he had returned but somewhere among the shards of her heart, she felt a small spark light in her chest. Although she heard him call out for a spar, it was almost like the words went in one ear and out the other ear of the hollowed queen. Everything in her life was a fog, everything was slow and she even moved slowly.

Eventually, however, Kahlua made it to the clearing that Destrier had chosen for his spar and found her Protector standing there. Turning up the corners of her lips ever so slightly, the queen tried to trot up to him and extend her nose to his neck. “My friend, I've missed you,” she said softly, but as her blue eyes looked up towards his there was no happiness in them. She could not keep the happiness in her heart. Every time some sun tried to creep through, the darkness in Kahlua's heart smothered it out with memories of the challenge, of the snake, with chants of murderess, murderess. For that's all she was. Even if her friends denied it.

But somewhere in staring at the Protector, his words suddenly whispered back into her head. A spar. That's what he had called them here for. Stepping back, Kahlua considered quietly for a moment. She had done little but flail during her challenge with Aurelia, throw herself wildly and pray to the gods in the hopes of an end to the torture. But if she ever met her ex-Seer again she would have to know how to survive. Because surely Aurelia would attack, and surely Kahlua would have to endure again because death was no compensation for the damage she had caused the golden girl. She needed to train so that she could survive to feel pain. It was the only choice left for her.

Stepping back, to try and give the stallion space, Kahlua spoke quietly. The usual dance in her voice was all but gone, her words an unfamiliar monotone. “Will you train me, friend? I know so little of your art.” It was good that she did not look up, good that she did not spy or remember Destrier's familiar green. Surely the thought of fighting another companion would have set the girl over the edge. However, she did not see the dragon, and so lifted her head, waiting patiently for the Protector to begin.

Post| 0/3
WC| 588
@[Destrier]- do you want to be tagged? <3
the sunshower
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Permission granted to use magic or physical force with Kahlua at any time
for any reason to any degree, with the exception of killing her.

Please do not tag Kahlua unless it is in an opening post

Destrier Posts: 180
Outcast atk: 5 | def: 7.5 | dam: 7.5
Stallion :: Equine :: 16.3hh :: 16 HP: 65.5 | Buff: ENDURE
Suli :: Common Green Dragon :: Fire Breath & Merlin :: Plain Black Dragon :: Frost Breath Dingo
#3
Destrier
From the woods stepped not the spitfire youngster I'd been expecting to show up, but the dear lady I recognized easily as Kahlua. Last I had been in the Edge, she was still the Glazier of these lands and was more or less the leading force in building our now decrepit wall. Word had gotten to me through Dragomir that she no longer held the position of a glass crafter, but that of a Queen of these misty, foggy lands. A title that, from what I had seen, suited her well.

She approached, her eyes meeting my own, and in that moment I acted a heroic character badly studied; and being a novice on such a stage, I forgot my part before a pair of lovely blue eyes. My heart beat a little faster as I looked into the depths of them, though I found not the happy-go-lucky mare I had known before, but a creature devoid of true happiness despite the weak smile tugging across her face. For a few embarrassing moments, I could do little more than stare before I remembered myself, the feeling of her nose against my neck saving me from further humiliation.

"Kahlua," I said at last, deep voice gentle as her name passed through my lips and she stepped back, much to my chagrin. When she spoke next, my brows furrowed deeply at hearing such an unordinary tone of voice. My look was one of pure concern, not judgement, for it just seemed too unlike the painted girl to speak in such a manner. I yearned to know what was eating her up, to try and help her and allow our spar to be forgotten, but her words insisted that that was what she wanted to do. My lips pulled into a straight line, on the verge of pressing for information on what ailed her mind, before I relented and breathed a gentle sigh.

"Of course," came my answer on what I hoped to be a soft, reassuring smile, "I would be delighted to. Perhaps you could make the first move, and show me what you do know."

And maybe get some of what I assumed was pent up emotion out.

"bloop"

[ooc - 368 words.
No need to tag ;D
looking for heaven
found a devil in me
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You may attack and use magic on Des at any time for any reason.

HP: 66.5

Kahlua the Sunshower Posts: 662
Outcast atk: 5.5 | def: 9.5 | dam: 4.5
Mare :: Equine :: 15.3hh :: 9 [Orangemoon] HP: 65 | Buff: NOVICE
Khan :: Common Blue Dragon :: Frost Breath Sevin
#4
KAHLUA
Kahlua. Her own name sounded almost foreign to her. How could she be the same mare, the same queen, that had led them before? How could she still be Kahlua the Sunshower when all she had done was rain misery upon the Qian? How could he still be delighted to teach her? Didn't he understand that she had betrayed the herd, that she was nothing more than a false queen sitting upon a throne of lies? There were so many questions to be answered, so many thoughts whirling in her head that brought her nothing but misery. The foolish queen understood forgiveness quite well, but she had yet to learn that it also applied to herself.

“You'll find it isn't much,” she responded softly, just the slightest hint of her normal dancing voice found in the words. There were moments, seconds, where she could feel her real self poking through. There were instants where she could remember who she was, who she had been. But, as now, they faded away, leaving the girl caught between two ropes pulling her in opposite directions. She wanted to be happy, wanted to dance among clouds and forget that life had any troubles. It would be so easy for her to block that part of her mind, to erase the terrible memory of Shilva's death, to let go of her worries and woes. But the other rope pulled back- she had been shirking her duties too long. This was a punishment. She needed to suffer for her foolishness, feel pain to repay the golden girl. She needed to know what it was to be lonely. And now, as with every other time, the rope pulling her downwards into her own personal hell was the one that won.

Looking at the stallion before her, the painted queen briefly contemplated what she knew. For all the few fights she had been in, Kahlua had never attacked first. What had the others done? She had been in close proximity to Ricochet and he had simply reared up, hooves flying towards her head. Farenjar had charged her out of nowhere, streaking from the shadows and pointing his dangerous horn in her direction. And Aurelia? Aurelia had exploded in a ball of fire. But Kahlua was not in a position to rear and let her hooves fly, she did not have a horn and she could not explode in a ball of fire. She was just Kahlua. Illynx had called her plain. Perhaps the GildedBlade had been correct.

But since Kahlua was the one that had asked to be trained and Destrier was the one giving direction, the painted girl knew she could not stand here forever and wait for him to attack. She had to follow his directions- though she was (a false) queen, he was in charge in this moment.

With nothing else to go on except what she had seen in her own time, the queen decided that she would try to emulate Ricochet. Beginning to trot, the queen tried to close what few steps were between her and Destrier before rearing up. Her hooves stretched out, beating the air rhythmically and attempting to strike Destrier upon his side or his rump. “I'm sorry,” she said softly, squinting her eyes closed and turning her head away for a moment. To attack the stallion felt awkward, out of character, unnatural... Especially to attack him unprovoked. She did not understand how warriors could enjoy the act of battle but she was glad there were warriors in the world. They were needed as much as healers or diviners or crafters or any other rank.

As gravity began to pull her body back downward, Kahlua suddenly remembered something else that had been used to attack her- teeth. Mildly, gently, meekly, the queen reached out towards the taller stallion and tried to bite at his flesh. The move could hardly be called an attack. If it even hit, it would be little more than a love nip, but the queen was unsure of herself. Of course, that was why she was training. Patiently, the forlorn queen awaited the warrior's response- verbal or physical- and continued to tell herself that this training was for the best... even if it felt terribly awkward.

Post| 1/3
WC| 712
the sunshower
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Permission granted to use magic or physical force with Kahlua at any time
for any reason to any degree, with the exception of killing her.

Please do not tag Kahlua unless it is in an opening post

Destrier Posts: 180
Outcast atk: 5 | def: 7.5 | dam: 7.5
Stallion :: Equine :: 16.3hh :: 16 HP: 65.5 | Buff: ENDURE
Suli :: Common Green Dragon :: Fire Breath & Merlin :: Plain Black Dragon :: Frost Breath Dingo
#5
Destrier
The painted Queen claimed she didn't know much in the ways of battle, but not knowing much was better than knowing nothing at all.

Though was she really ready to learn? Right here, right now? The Kahlua I had known many a season ago peeked through the softness of her voice when she spoke next, but the melancholic mask she had brought along with her was quick to slide back over her only moments later. Dark lips pressed together in a firm, thin line as I gazed upon her, taking in the mare's demeanor and trying my damnest to read her, but I could not. Something was wrong, my gut couldn't be convinced otherwise, and my belly ached in tremendous concern for the Queen I barely knew.

The duties of being a soldier and a friend were ever at war, a heavy, tangible weight in my breast, but she wanted to learn. She had answered my call and asked me to train her, and that was what I intended to do, even if the circumstances weren't as I would've liked them to be.

Dragging in a deep breath that expanded my barrel, I watched as she began to approach, experienced eyes sizing her up. She was by no means the smallest I had fought, and had plenty of weight to throw around if she wanted to, but I still stood over and out-muscled her. She would be more agile than I, though, and I'd have to keeps my wits about me to avoid any easy hits.

... Or would I?

Her first attack was slow and lacked heart, and through Suli's eyes I captured a glimpse of the mare even turning her head away as she struck for me. Shifting my weight and turning to the right, presenting my left side to her with hindquarters lined even to where she stood, feeling the beat of a hoof or two land on the thick of my rump. It was a dull pain like that of a slap, stinging for but a moment, but one that would fade as the battle progressed. I popped my rear end up then as gravity took control and forced the Queen back down, intending to give her a mouthful of my rump before my own bulk was forced back down to earth.

"Don't apologize!" I bellowed as I moved away from Kahlua, our left sides facing one another as I made a wide, hefty half circle towards her, "If you want to learn to fight, then there can be no apologies. You have to find that one thing to fight for, Kahlua, and you have to cling to it." Oh, how I loathed barking such things at my Queen, but if this was how she would handle herself in the face of an enemy, then I had no choice. Perhaps my words could evoke some kind of fire within her. They had to. "The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him," I added as I rounded towards her, hoping to be facing her left side from approximately twenty feet head-on now, "But because he loves what is behind him!"

I had done a lot of ungraceful things in my long life, but as I pushed myself into a charge at her, the last thing I expected was a horrid, intense strain somewhere in the upper rear part of my back right leg, beginning from right above the hock and up the better half of my rear. I inhaled a sharp, hitching breath, ears tipping back as the pain radiated the length of the injury. I must have pulled something; damn it, I was getting old.

But I pressed through the pain, favoring and jerking the leg up every other step or so, irritation at the throbbing pain apparent across a firmly set face, teeth clenched together behind sealed lips. As I neared Kahlua, and if she didn't move, I planned to ram my broad chest right into her exposed side. It was a move unlikely to be used on the battlefield, as most would typically be right on my tail, or had long, deadly horns protruding from their foreheads that kept me at bay.

Whether I was successful in slamming into her and knocking her rear out from under her or to the side, or not at all, I turned to the right and kicked out for the painted Queen, again hissing as the motion and mindful to keep my right leg drawn a little closer than my left.

"bloop"

[ooc - 761 words.
1/3 attacks
looking for heaven
found a devil in me
Image Credit


You may attack and use magic on Des at any time for any reason.

HP: 66.5

Kahlua the Sunshower Posts: 662
Outcast atk: 5.5 | def: 9.5 | dam: 4.5
Mare :: Equine :: 15.3hh :: 9 [Orangemoon] HP: 65 | Buff: NOVICE
Khan :: Common Blue Dragon :: Frost Breath Sevin
#6
KAHLUA
The mare was no scholar, no student, no learned creature. She should have paid attention as she was kicking out at Destrier, noticed that he had turned to protect the most vital portions of his body from her onslaught, and stored that information for use at a later date. She should have cared to notice, but as quick as the idea of a teaching spar had come into her head, it had flitted back out again. In her depression, her mind did not want to stay focused on one task for very long and she had offered all the attention she could muster in trying to remember all the fights she had been in before.

Still, Destrier was no mind reader and he could not know that her heart was suddenly not in the fight. His rump rose up from the ground before her bite could land, the stallion's faster reflexes a product of his superior training, and Destrier's well-muscled hindquarters smashed into her lower jaw. Her teeth slammed together and the queen suddenly found herself in a very familiar situation. The head injury that Aurelia had given her, clearly not entirely healed, flared back up. Immediately, her head was pounding and the world around her was spinning. As if the poor queen wasn't beaten up enough already, Destrier began shouting at her. Couldn't he see she had a headache?

Reflexively, the queen's ears fell back upon her head, trying to drown out the noise; still, Destrier's bellow and his mighty voice rammed itself into her head. Her sergeant would not be ignored, it seemed; however, all his words did was anger her. It was not what he said- if she had bothered to listen she might have found that he was making plenty of sense. No, it was the fact that he was yelling at her. Couldn't he see her head was swimming, her heart was broken, her soul was shattered? Couldn't he see that she didn't want this anymore?

But perhaps he was just trying to teach her a lesson- that if she asked for something she had to see it through to the end. The queen did not know his intent. Between the rhythmic throbbing in her skull and the barking commands from the black stallion, Kahlua's general awareness of the situation was lacking. A shame, as it were. She noticed only at the very last minute that he was barreling right towards her very exposed left side. She bunched her muscles, tried to jump forward, but it was too little too late. Her sergeant slammed his chest into her left hip, violently throwing her body to the side, a new pain wrecking her body and she squealed from the sensation. Unsurprisingly, the assault gave the queen no relief from her mental anguish.

Her feet struggled for purchase as her body flew to the right, her rear limbs nearly buckling underneath her and throwing her onto the ground. Somehow (by the will of her Moon Goddess, perhaps?) the queen managed to gain some footing and remain upright. Indeed, she had stumbled so far to the side that Destrier's hooves barely grazed over her flesh as he kicked out at her. “Well you don't have to shout at me!” she whined back at him suddenly, a childish impudence in her voice. She was hardly the regal queen her herd imagined her to be- blame it on her pounding head.

But perhaps his shouting and attack had awoken something more primal in her soul, because the queen found that she was moving without even thinking about it. Her stride was not long or graceful; in fact, she limped quite severely on her hind left limb, the muscles already swelling and tightening in resistance. But she was determined now- Destrier had shouted at her and assaulted her and she felt this strange need, an insistent desire, to show him that she was not totally useless.

She dug her hooves into the ground, squealing again from her throbbing head and painful limb, but determined to catch him. She had an idea, a memory of an attack, and she was eager to implement it. She cantered forward, hoping to pass by his left side, get her hip about even with his shoulder, and then buck. If she could manage it, she would aim for his hind limb, remembering how terrible it had been when Ricochet had assaulted her gaskin and cannon. For good measure, she threw her body to the right, attempting to press her uninjured right side against Destrier and throw him off track, perhaps to make him stumble or falter. Of course, the silly queen never bothered to consider his bulk against hers. But ah, that is why she had asked him to teach her, was it not?

Post| 2/3
WC| 798
the sunshower
Image Credit


Permission granted to use magic or physical force with Kahlua at any time
for any reason to any degree, with the exception of killing her.

Please do not tag Kahlua unless it is in an opening post

Destrier Posts: 180
Outcast atk: 5 | def: 7.5 | dam: 7.5
Stallion :: Equine :: 16.3hh :: 16 HP: 65.5 | Buff: ENDURE
Suli :: Common Green Dragon :: Fire Breath & Merlin :: Plain Black Dragon :: Frost Breath Dingo
#7
Destrier
Like a runaway train, my chest had slammed into the painted lady's hip, managing to throw her lighter frame harshly to the side. My chest throbbed and stung from the impact itself, but it was the type of pain that was fleeting and would be gone soon enough, or become sore over the next few days. I had expected her to move and avoid the charge, to at least try to get away, but she had merely stood there and taken the full brunt of the attack. At least she had managed to keep upright and avoid my last kick, even if she hadn't entirely meant to.

Although it was an unpleasant feeling that made my teeth grit together behind closed mouth, that I had brought pain upon her, she did deserve it. A Queen needed to know how to fight, to be reminded that she must always keep her wits about her in the heat of battle, and that's why I was here; to teach her.

But I couldn't go easy on her, because a real threat would stop at nothing to kill her.

'Well you don't have to shout at me!'

Kahlua's sudden shout was both heart-wrenching and uplifting; the last thing I had wanted to do was to bring her harm and upset her, which I was doing without a doubt in my mind, and yet, those sudden words also meant I had gotten through to her, that my words had done something and finally provoked her to move, to act, to fight.

Peering briefly into my bonded's mind, who still perched in the pines with obvious discontent, I could see Kahlua regaining her footing and then, without so much as a second thought, she was after me, and the beating of her hooves catching up to me began to pound like war drums in my ears. She was coming up on my left, and my mind worked quickly to conjure all the possibilities she had laid before her in the moment we were side by side, and in that moment, I, too, acted.

My sheer size made it difficult to stop as quickly as most, and as I dropped my haunches and thus shifted the brunt of my weight to them, the pain in my hindquarters increased tenfold and caused my teeth to grind together, a violent snort ripping from flared nostrils. But my agony wasn't over yet, as barely a second later, two hard hooves came crashing into my chest, the pain radiating outwards across the width of it, the force enough to cause me to grunt and steal my breath away for a few moments. It would bruise, swell up in the shape of her hoof and cause a few days of lingering pain, but it burned most brightly here and now.

I'd come to a complete stop by then, and so when Kahlua shifted herself to the right, no longer was I there to crash into. Recomposing myself, I made haste after the painted Queen, but a turbulent roar from overhead ripped through my ears and nearly severed my concentration completely.

"Suli, stop!"

But the mental command fell on a blinded mind, and nothing could stop the dragoness as she dived for Kahlua's head, craning her neck to bite for her ears, intending to latch on before bringing her feet to the mare's head, using it to shove off of as she took to flight again.

I was torn; should I stop, because of Suli's intervention? To apologize to my Queen, my Queen for the emerald's interference, for attacking when she'd been told otherwise? Great God of the Sun, I wanted to, but this was the chance to show Kahlua that not all went as planned, that the numbers wouldn't always be fair, as terrible a feeling it caused in my already throbbing chest.

Charging forward, albeit slowed down a great deal from the pain that slowly leaked from my hindquarters and chest, I made to use Suli's distraction to my advantage. Coming up from behind Kahlua, assuming I was able to catch up to her at all, I came around to her right side with mouth agape, body raising in a rear as I bit for her crest and attempted to strike at her back with my left foreleg, all the while my back leg screamed in agony at having my weight shifted back upon it.

"bloop"

[ooc - 741 words
2/3 attacks
looking for heaven
found a devil in me
Image Credit


You may attack and use magic on Des at any time for any reason.

HP: 66.5

Kahlua the Sunshower Posts: 662
Outcast atk: 5.5 | def: 9.5 | dam: 4.5
Mare :: Equine :: 15.3hh :: 9 [Orangemoon] HP: 65 | Buff: NOVICE
Khan :: Common Blue Dragon :: Frost Breath Sevin
#8
KAHLUA
The queen's plan did not go exactly as she had hoped, but indeed it went better than she ever could have dreamed. As her hooves crashed into Destrier's chest, she was left with a familiar yet confusing sensation. It was a bittersweet moment, her emotions whirling to try and catch up with what she was feeling. She had hit him, solidly it seemed, her hooves landing solidly on his fleshy, well-muscled chest, but she could not really feel happy about assaulting another. It only left a sick taste in her mouth, a knowledge in her head that she was hurting this warrior who had done nothing but swear to protect her. He had asked for it, she had asked for it, and yet... There was no denying that there was not a warrior's blood coursing through her veins. Even when she needed it to be there, it would not rise to the surface.

Stumbling over her hooves after trying to throw herself into the nothingness beside her, the queen did not notice the new terror that was coming to ravage her mind- Suli. It was the sound of rushing wings just above her head that finally made the queen's blue eyes raise to the heavens. In that second, that terrible moment, her heart stopped. Everything happened all at once, each sound and action blending into one another as though they were one. The queen balked, trying to halt her forward momentum, hind legs pressing underneath her body, her left one uproarious at the assault on its well-being; the sunshower screamed, her shrill whinny piercing the air, her head tossed to the heavens; and the dragon attacked, teeth reaching downwards to bite her now lifted nose, rather than her ears. Blood ran from her pink muzzle, though the cut was not very deep, and dragon claws bounced lithely off of her head.

So, why all the dramatics? Shilva.

Though a dragon was no snake, a bond was a bond and Kahlua found her heart cold at the prospect of injuring the sweet emerald. She was a murderess, the Sunshower had convinced herself, to kill companions was in her veins. She could not give Destrier such pain. It had been terrible enough to do it to Aurelia, who had revealed herself a traitor. To destroy her sergeant in such a way when he had been nothing but loyal to the Edge and its rulers? She had pondered throwing herself from the cliff for Aurelia. She would actually do it for Destrier.

At least the dragon seemed to have more self-preservation instincts than the snake. While Kahlua's heart beat too rapidly in her chest, the dragon seemed to fly away to safety. Kahlua silently thanked the Moon Goddess and considered dropping to her knees in prayer before she was violently reminded that she was in the middle of a battle. Thudding hooves from behind her awoke her senses just in time to send Kahlua skittering her hind end out to her left about 90 degrees, her left rear again giving her some trouble. And while Destrier's teeth still fell easy across her neck, biting tender flesh and bruising the area with the blunt assault, she did manage to avoid all but the wind created by his thrashing hooves.

It was instinct that left her to respond to his attack, her mind still blank as she attempted to recover from the shock and horror of Suli's sudden appearance. She had tried to reach for her magic, tried to calm herself with the power that had almost become a drug to her in her darkest hours, but the familiar soothing sensation did not come. She tried and tried, almost begging to the moon goddess in her head to let her feel that serenity, that tranquility that she was so accustomed to. No amount of imploring seemed to change anything, though. Here on the battlefield, her magic had failed her.

Her hooves were moving without thought, without her input. She angled her body to the right and trotted off, so that her left side would now be alongside his left if he had not moved. Her body seemed to know what it was doing, even if she did not. As she moved, her teeth reached out absently to try and pinch his flesh. When her hips were hopefully even with his she bucked again, her hooves seeming to aim for the lower portion of his ribcage. All the while, her hollow blue eyes were searching the sky for signs of a dragon to come again. She had to avoid it... not to avoid the pain- the pain she deserved a thousand times over- but to avoid what accidental destruction she might pummel the emerald with. She could not kill again.

Post| 3/3
WC| 794
the sunshower
Image Credit


Permission granted to use magic or physical force with Kahlua at any time
for any reason to any degree, with the exception of killing her.

Please do not tag Kahlua unless it is in an opening post

Blu the Bootyful Posts: 443
Administrator atk: 99 | def: 99 | dam: 99
Mare :: Other :: 5'7" :: 25 HP: 99999 | Buff: TWERK
Blu
#9
@[Destrier] has not posted within 3 weeks, this fight defaults to @[Kahlua]

@[Official]
 HP: 1100

Helovia Hard Mode

Sevin the Sucky, I mean are you a # or vacuum? Posts: 161
OOC Account
Mare :: Other :: 5'5" :: 25
Sevin
#10
I'd like to request partial judging please :D

Official Posts: 847
Administrator
Stallion :: Equine :: ::
Official
#11
By my verdict: DESTRIER is the winner!

KAHLUA
Realism [+3.5]
Overall you had great realism, keeping a great mind for attacks, defenses, timing, and injuries. The only one I questioned was whether or not she took enough damage in her second post, when she got the critical hit. I would have also liked to see more mention of the surroundings, although I know they were basic ones, saying something like the easy footing is what kept her from getting knocked over in the second post. Similarly more mention of their breed differences was desired. Lastly, although this only seemed to be an issue in your first post, you didn’t mention which side you were on/attacking on. All of these are minor in the scheme of realism, but did bring down your score. Otherwise I loved this and felt everything Kahlua did matched her character and her experience perfectly!


Emotion [+3]
All her posts had me drawn in the entire time, it was wonderful to read!


Prose [+4]
Throughout the fight you maintained great flow and style.


Readability [+3]
Everything was readable and there were no apparent typos or grammar issues.


Finally tally: 37+(13.5*2)= 64 HP

*******************************************

DESTRIER
Realism [+4]
In each post I could tell you have a great handle on fighting because all of the attacks, defenses, injuries and timing was great. You even included breed references regularly and were good at describing your direction in relation to your opponent and the attacks. I did question your defense on post 2 though because I’m not sure just with him stopping suddenly that Kahlua’s attack would go from his hind leg all the way to his chest. Otherwise you did great, especially with handling the damage in that first post when Kahlua barely hurt him, and then continually commenting on that injury which I loved. Don’t forget to also include scenery, although I know this one was pretty basic, just a little nod to the background would help tie everything in. Otherwise great job!


Emotion [+2.5]
I really enjoyed Destrier in each post and how he was constantly struggling to fight his queen because it was ultimately what was best for her. I loved his shouting and Suli’s disobedience!


Prose [+4]
Throughout the fight you maintained great flow and style.


Readability [+3]
Everything was readable and there were no apparent typos or grammar issues.


Finally tally: 49.5+(13.5*2)= 76.5 HP



Destrier is awarded 1 VP


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