A Brother's Bond

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[member="Mediha"] had taken Anderit aside to speak with him on his connection to the magicks. A connection which his sibling had also unknowingly fostered. The few Nightbrothers that did show any aptitude for the witches' warped view of the arcane were taken from the village and rarely seen again. When they did turn up, they were never the same men that had left. Decrepit powers warped their bodies and shattered their souls, turning them into unholy warriors to follow the Nightmother's orders without question. That would not be the fate of the two brothers -- Anderit had made sure of it.

The Witch who was their keeper had agreed to teach him some of her ways, and he had already begun to progress. He would learn all that he could from her, and when the time came, he and [member="Zared Rinaren"] would find their way off this wretched world, with or without Mediha. Anderit had a taste for the outer galaxy, and he'd come to understand just how decrepit Dathomir truly was.

The men were treated as equals in most other places. Warriors with connections to the magicks decided the fate of entire systems. He and Zared were meant for more than simple servitude; in time Mediha would come to see that.

As of right now, that required training. The lightsaber staff Anderit had procured was not unlike his glaive, though the weight was gone and balancing the weapon was difficult. He'd already managed to singe his right arm on one occasion. Fortunately he had managed to find the power switch and turn down the energy output beforehand.

The two brothers would need to practice with their new tools before they could dare to use them in combat. These were the weapons of Sith; warriors who had broken the chains of servitude to become something more. Anderit would master these tools, and then he would do the same.

The dueling area was less a ring and more a makeshift oval. Anderit had swept everything aside in the yard behind their hut and called upon his brother. He was clad in hunting leathers for this exercise, and his short hair was bound back by a black toboggan. The crimson blade hummed as he twirled it to gain a feel for its weight.

"How do you like my new toy Zared? On any other world, it would have females fawning over me," he snickered, "Lady Mediha says we have a connection to the Magicks. What do you think of it?"

 

[Acheron354]

Zared was sitting on the hut while his brother began to twirl his own weapon. When he heard his brother's words he simply chuckled before shrugging. "How the hell should I know? Maybe we have connections, maybe we don't. It doesn't matter if we stay weak." Zared glared up at the sky, not truly paying his hatred to any one thing. After another moment Zared stood up and flipped forward, landing softly on the ground beside his brother.

Drawing his own weapon he quickly ignited the crimson blade of the weapon, watching as it reached it's full height in less than a second. A few practice swings showed the weapon to be the exact opposite of his war spear. Where his spear was tip heavy and base light the lightsaber's only weight was in the hilt. "This will take some getting used to."

Zared's own natural fighting style relied on quick movements and precise attacks, while the lightsaber was perfect for that purpose he was not sure how to implement this new weapon into his fighting style.

He held the blade similar to his war spear, holding it out in front of him in a defensive manner. "Come on brother, show me what you've got."

[member="Anderit Rinaren"]

 

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This was no glaive. Anderit twirled the weapon for the sole purpose of watching the colors flicker. It was a magnificent weapon; one the Nightsisters could only match with their lightwhips. Anderit had never been a fan of the energy whips -- they were too volatile. A simple flick of the wrist could leave its wielder without a head. At least with the lightsaber he could be sure he was fine, so long as he kept himself clear of the pointy end.

"I say we master them," Anderit shot back. He began to circle his brother, looking for an opening. The two of them were both experienced in traditional melee combat, and this was borne of such traditions. It was modified to fit the purpose of the Sith and the Jedi, the latter of which Anderit knew next to nothing about.

"Mediha is a bit cold. She's a pretty one though, isn't she?" The Nightbrother chuckled as he lunged at his brother. The lightsaber was aimed to clash with Zared's own -- a test to see how the weapons reacted to one another. There was a flash of sparks and the sound of the energy beams being temporarily disrupted, but the blades held.

So the tales of these grand duels are true.

He felt the magicks at the edge of his mind. He did not deny them now, instead opting to follow Mediha's lessons. He slipped into them, allowed them to guide his movements, and so his assault began. While his brother opted for a defensive posture, Anderit was all offense, his twin-bladed weapons carving crimson lines through the air as he jabbed, cleaved, and stabbed at his brother with quiet, powerful blows.

Anderit's fighting style was never the most refined. He tried to overpower his opponents through aggressive strikes and heavy handed blows. [member="Zared Rinaren"] had been his sparring partner throughout his entire life -- he was sure the warrior would counter his opening attacks without much issue.

 

[Acheron354]

Zared chuckled at his brother's words before nodding. "Yes, she is a pretty one. I am sure your lessons with her will bore...interesting fruit." When his brother lunged forward Zared quickly flicked his wrist, meeting his brother's blade with that of his own. He saw the flash of sparks and heard the almost sweet sound of energy colliding.

The nightbrother often denounced the use of magicks, but he would not lie, since their last trial he had been tapping into them much more. They were strangely compatible to his savage instincts.

When his brother charged and began a series of attacks Zared began to parry them, his own blade's weight was virtually nonexistent, causing his moves to be fast and quick. While he did not care to retaliate yet he was holding his ground well, the problem Zared had with his brother's weapon was it was too predictable. While it had two blades they were connected, therefore if he knew where one was, he could guess where the other was.

When Anderit brought his blade down on Zared the Nightbrother brought his own up to parry, as he did he drew his war spear off of his back. He quickly planted it into the ground between Anderit's legs, pushing back on the blades, hoping to trip the man.

[member="Anderit Rinaren"]

 

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Zared was always a quick one. With each vicious strike, Anderit's brother managed to find some way to repel it. He would expect no less from his sibling; the duo were both warriors in their prime. He would not accept a loss from his brother so early in the duel, and he doubted Zared would accept that of him either.

The spear did manage to catch him off guard, and the strike that joined it sent Anderit reeling. He tumbled backward, only managing to avoid crashing to the ground by the will of the magicks. He deactivated the lightsaber and pitched into a hard back roll, then sprung up to his feet. A bit dirty now, but otherwise unharmed. "Gorgeous actually, though I believe she hates me." The young warrior boomed with laughter, "Perhaps you should try your hand -- nice move, by the way."

Then Anderit tried something he had been working on for some time. He took aim at his brother, and without another word, hurled the double-edged weapon with all his bight. The weapon span toward his brother; it was guided by the magicks. It was a move he never would have dared with a glaive -- he was hoping to catch [member="Zared Rinaren"] off guard.

 

[Acheron354]

When the brother spoke of Zared trying his hand he shrugged, chuckling at his brother's recovery from his last attack. "Don't worry, many peopl hate you, nothing new there." The young warrior bent down to pick up his spear while contemplating the man's words. "I have never considered becoming attached with a nightsister I am assigned to...it could end badly. Besides I am not exactly a "charmer." Even among the nightbrothers Zared was considered one of the more...savage. It was not exactly the way he carried himself, but his methods of fighting and surviving that scared even some of the stronger warriors in the village.

When he pulled his spear from the ground he watched as his brother hurled his lightsaber towards him. Zared's eyes grew wide when he saw the burning blades flying towards him. He quickly brought his lightsaber up to deflect the blade, causing him to leave a rather nasty burn on his left arm. After looking over the wound he chuckled softly. "Damn, got me."

[member="Anderit Rinaren"]

 

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The maneuver had worked! That came as quite the surprise. Anderit held his hand forth for the blade, and it sailed into his open palm a moment later. The magicks were beginning to respond to him more and more every day, albeit with some resistance.

"It's expected of us to couple with one of the Sisters eventually," he mused as he stepped forward. One moment he was walking, and the next he was charging. The lightsaber staff hummed a song of death as it arced downward in a vicious overhanded slice. "All things can end badly, Zary." He shouted as the blade sailed toward its mark.

He needed to incorporate more of his magicks in his combat style. He had no doubt Zared was augmented by such powers -- Mediha had explained that one's connection to the darker magicks could make that so. Zared was a warrior of fury; h was sure his younger brother could access such powers with little issue.

Anderit on the other hand, had trouble channeling his anger into the flow of combat. His skills revolved more around tactical strikes, keeping one's calm in battle. When the rage did take him, it was all consuming, and he often lost control in his blood lust. The strength it brought him was impressive, but the loss of sense, even temporarily, frightened him.

"Besides, she seems the type to love your brooding attitude!"

[member="Zared Rinaren"]

 

[Acheron354]

When Anderit charged at him Zared quickly brought his lightsaber up to block the strike. He began to give ground, allowing Anderit to push him back to the hut as they exchanged blows. "Yea, you're right! We're supposed to find a mate! But that doesn't mean I will find one now!"

After a moment Zared was only a meter from the hut, he continued to clash lightsabers with Anderit before smirking. Tapping into the dark magicks once more Zared used the momentum from his brothers hit and pushed off the ground, leaping towards the wall of the small building.

He let his foot push off of the wall as he came back down on Anderit in a viscous strike aimed for the man's shoulder. Immediately after he would begin a series of quick stabs and lunges, aimed for the man's shoulders and arms. "I happen to think my attitude is perfectly fine. A good balance between eternal hatred and convenient malice."

[member="Anderit Rinaren"]

 

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I don't really want a mate either.

The conversation distracted Anderit for a moment. He blinked in surprise as his brother used the hut as a springboard -- only to shore up a meager defense as the Nightbrother fell upon him. The opening strike was parried with the tip of the blade, but the subsequent assault could not be dealt with so easily. It was all he could do to maintain his defense. Gritting his teeth in frustration, Anderit was steadily pushed out of the 'ring' they had constructed. Each second was one in which he lost ground.

"Sisters love that sort of thing Zary," he grumbled as his brother's blade was slashed along his shoulder. It destroyed the sleeve of his hunting leathers, and it burnt like a schutta, but Anderit had felt worse. He grimaced, looking for an opening to counter with. He found it in his brother's legs.

His staff was busy fending off Zared's blows, but his legs were free to do as they willed. That was the advantage of polearms -- your weapon gave you better openings via a greater defense. Cracking an amused little grin, Anderit swept a foot out to smash into Zared's calf and hopefully send him stumbling, or even toppling over.

"I'm sure [member="Mediha"] is daydreaming about you as we speak Zary," he snickered, "I didn't use 'Lady' in front of her name. She'll know somehow."

[member="Zared Rinaren"]

 

[Acheron354]

Zared had not expected his brother's legs to connect with his own, the results being Zared falling back on the ground with a hard slam. Almost instantly the nightbrother rolled back into a three-point stnace, his spear hand on the ground while his lightsaber was held in front of him. "Creative." Instantly Zared lunged forward, this time he brought his lightsaber up towards Anderit's shoulder in a lunge. At the last moment he twisted his ankle, shifting his body weight to send him into a counter clockwise spin. As he spun he lowered the lightsaber and raised his spear, aiming a slash for the arm opposite of what he was aiming for before. "Stop calling me that stupid name."

Honestly the name never got under Zared's skin, but for now he was making it anger him. It allowed the night brother to draw from his anger and focus even more on the heat of the battle. Even though it gave him strength Zared was careful not to give himself fully to his anger, if he did he would run the risk of harming his brother.