Iniquitous vs Alkor Centaris

[Eralam]

Our combatants find themselves in a simple practice arena. There are no crowds of cheering spectators, and no obstacles either. The arena is free of any distractions. Today, there is only the fight.

The arena is circular, twenty meters wide. A waist-high duracrete barrier surrounds it. Being thrown out of the arena does not count as a loss, but leaving it voluntarily will be taken as surrender. It's reasonably well lit, with the lights adjusted so as not to shine in the fighters' eyes.

The floor is smooth dirt, packed tightly by centuries of feet treading the same ground. It's slightly uneven, but not enough to really throw off footing. Combatants need not worry about anything but the fight.

The fighters will enter from opposite sides. The fight will go on until either one or both fighters is dead or incapacitated, a fighter surrenders either verbally or by leaving the ring, or time runs out.

Good luck, and may the Force be with you.

[member="Darth Ferus"]
[member="Drin"]

 

[Eralam]

[member="Darth Ferus"] had to withdraw from the match due to personal reasons. I've brought it a substitute fighter in the form of [member="Iniquitous"]. Inky has graciously agreed to step out of his dank little Canadian hole in the wilderness for this fight. A word of caution: he was the number 1 ranked duelist on JvS at its height. The man knows what he's doing. It's going to take every ounce of skill to beat him. If you pull it off, there will be a special price: a custom weapon from RCFC.

[member="Drin"]

 

[Iniquitous]

A different universe. The same old fight. He stepped into the practice arena, his 6'7" frame dwarfing the doorway. From his frame hung his black jacket. Reaching his knees, the lapels emblazoned with the twin purple Arkanian Dragons. From his black belt hung his twin black handled sabers, amethyst dragons adorning the hilts. His Ice Blue eyes surveyed the room as he strode to the edge of the practice mat, his Force Senses on high alert. You could never be to careful.

It felt like decades since this man, both writer and Dark Jedi, had participated in a good old fashioned brawl. He (they) were both looking forward to it

 

[Eralam]

So [member="Drin"] was a no show too, and is being replaced.

Sorry Alky, you get the big guy.

[member="Alkor Centaris"]

 

[Alkor Centaris]

It had been far, far too long.

The galaxy had gone stale. Things had changed, but Alkor remained the same. The lure of battle was no less strong now than it had ever been. Iniquitous, too, had never changed. The behemoth Arkanian stood taller than most men, but Alkor sought no advantage against him. They came from the same roots. They broke bread at the same table. They spilled the same blood. They shared the same Brothers.

That alone was enough to incite respect for this opponent. In his grip, the bloody blade erupted to life as he paced toward Dace Concordia with purpose in every step. "To think, this backwater tournament called to not one, but two Dark Jedi."

His smile broadened as Alkor drank in the excitement. Iniquitous was a fierce opponent, and he had slain many enemies. Alkor had experience with this man, as well. Their paths had deviated, but that was the past. Focused intently on the present, the gap between them slipped swiftly shut.

The practiced Juyo salute came and went as Alkor dipped the blade low and waited for his opponent.

[member="Iniquitous"]

 

[Iniquitous]

Ah. Alkor. A man he had not seen In a very long time. Indeed, they had fought together, and against one another. An excellent opponent to start the tournament. Coulda been worse. He could have been fighting Adi, and we all know how that ends.......

"An interesting twist of the Force to be sure my old friend. Not one to be ignored I would think"

His voice resonated in the tri-octave he was famous for, and he nodded his head in reply to Alkors Juyo salute. He wasted little time, his right fist snapping out in front of him quickly, projecting his attack through the force across the room, his left hand curling open at his hip, his right leg sliding forward slightly. A quick opening, a probing attack. He knew Alkor was no fool.....

 

[Alkor Centaris]

The same Iniquitous, despite the wear of time. Ever the skilled combatant, always a threat. In the fights against this man, Alkor had experienced a plethora of devastating and dangerous attacks, all of which sent him into high alert the instant that his opponent nodded. Darkness swelled through the air as the Jen'jidai drank in power and let it saturate his body. His muscles tensed and loosened as he exploded into motion as the projected strike rippled through the immaterial.

In his furious approach, Alkor glided effortlessly to the side of the attack. Unlike base level telekinesis, where one pushes in a straight line, Projected Fighting caused the attack to strike from a distance as though your fist were within range of landing a hit in earnest. Alkor knew the technique. He had been struck by it before. The first one would not find its mark.

It was not impossible that another might, however.

A violent crescendo of footfalls in the dirt left impressions in the shorter man's wake as he tore toward his foe at speed enhanced by the Force. Alkor slashed violently at the Arkanian from right to left in a vicious backhand once they were within melee distance. Above all, any conversation between them after Dace's previous words would have to wait until the combat came to its end.

Dark Jedi spoke with sabers.

 

[Iniquitous]

Excellent. The man had not lost his touch. With a slight grin as Alkor moved, Iniquitous left hand slapped almost gently across his body. The force manipulation however was far from gentle. His aim was to slam the projected fighting attack into the right side of the other man, hard and fast. As he did this, his right hand gripped his left saber and removed it from his belt, the blade hanging on his right hip slapping into his left palm at the end of his attack. The black blades spitting to life in all their malevolent glory. He slid his right leg back this time, his left side leading, ready to spring back if he had to.

 

[Alkor Centaris]

Still lingering under the opiate effects of Force Speed, Alkor surged forward as Iniquitous slapped at him with a violent telekinetic attack. With his blade in his left hand and his body already traveling head on toward the massive man, it was not difficult to use the coattails of the malevolent surge of force power to his advantage. The pain of being struck came and went as the blast deviated the Corellian's trajectory and carried him out to the other man's right side.

But the backhanded strike still hung in danger of slicing through the torso of the one-time Faceless Lord.

The power bled away from him as he slid past, heels digging into dirt to stall his movement. Alkor never took his eyes off of the monster of a man, his even breaths belying the constant threat of fatigue that came with drawing so heavily on the Force, and so quickly. Juyo allotted a greater affluence and much higher stamina to its users, which came as a great boon in this kind of battle.

 

[Iniquitous]

Only his years of fighting and heightened senses saved him from being bifurcated at the waist. His torso twisted with Alkors Drive By Fruiting.....I mean backhanded slash. Iniquitous right saber slashed out to his right, his wrist angled down slightly, catching the incoming blade mere inches from his stomach. He continued the twist, his left blade slashing across as well, looking to at the very least singe the skin, and at the most cut through the other mans spine. He was now facing Alkor with his left side leading, right blade held low, left blade pointing at the other man slightly, his elbow bent, and grin on his face. He had forgotten how much he enjoyed the thrill of a good fight.

 

[Alkor Centaris]

His blade met with resistance, but not the kind that he favored. The disdainful report of sabers clashing coupled with the flare up of his senses. White noise screeched in his head as the force warned him of impending danger, and Alkor reacted purely on instinct. His left foot took a step forward, across his body and away from Iniquitous as the man struck out with his blade toward the Jen'jidai's back. The screech elevated as the strike came perilously close to his body, and the singed fibers of his robes stank of o-zone and charred fabric.

The blood colored blade spun in a tight circle behind him, over top of the parrying saber and down to meet with the attacking weapon. Their weapons cracked and spat as they met in a ferocious hail of sparks, then ceased as he batted the offending saber away and brought his own to bear, pointed directly toward his adversary.

Lesser men would have been sprawled on the dirt, licking their wounds. Iniquitous and Alkor were something else entirely. Transcendent. The Corellian Exile did not wear the Cheshire expression that the other man wore. His own face was a grim mask. The anger of failing to land a single blow, coupled with coming so close to falling victim to a basic shiim stirred the maelstrom that boiled beneath the surface.

He simply nodded.

 

[Iniquitous]

Iniquitous winked at Alkor and stepped forward. He wasn't moving quickly, be he was moving cautiously. He led with his left hand, the blade held low and across his body, his right blade mid height and out to his right slightly. He was basically stalking the other man. His eyes flashed as he moved. He was enjoying himself quite a bit, and he wouldn't rush it if he could help it.

He would take his time, savour the battle, the clash of blade, the roar of The Force in his veins, the Darkside screeching through the room. It was nearly time to unleash.

 

[Alkor Centaris]

Alkor knew from experience that Iniquitous was a dangerous enemy. Giving this man the opportunity to mount a massive offensive had spelled doom for a multitude of opponents, and aside from that, Alkor was not the sort of fighter who let up. The first pass of attacks had yielded nothing for either of them.

So it was time to get serious.

Iniquitous adopted a cautious stance. He moved like a jaguar on the prowl, and he went so far as to wink at Alkor. The younger, smaller Dark Jedi responded with something else entirely. His blade spun in a blur of crimson, then came rampaging down toward the Arkanian's left arm at an angle...

 

[Cassus Akovin]

This is an extremely close fight. There isn’t a lot to work with as far as making a judgement, but what is here is excellent on both accounts. Although Iniquitous produced very short passages that sometimes missed spaces consistently, he was very precise, clear, and level headed with his choice of words. There is virtue in succinct prose when utilized correctly (something I have not personally mastered). On the other account, I thoroughly enjoyed Alkhor’s exposition of the relationship between the two characters, and over all prefered reading his posts on a stylistic standpoint.

On the whole however, dueling is not about the prose you use, but how you use it. Both used it, as I already stated, excellently. Inquitous defended against Alkhors offenses and eloquently weaved in counter’s as he did so. He came the closest to actually getting a hit on his opponent. Alkhor I think, probably suffered a little bit in versatility due to his use of a singular weapon to his opponents two, and with so little information the advantage appears to be Inquitous’ hands, doubled on top of the fact that otherwise the opponents appear to be on very similar skill levels.

Verdict: Iniquitous is the victor of this match, and will proceed to the next round.​

Good match, [member="Alkor Centaris"], as always!

[member="Iniquitous"], I look forward to seeing what you will do in the next round.