Lost in the Dark [Need Trainer]

[Valduin Izbien]

All of them...

All of them useless...

Undeserving...

Weak...

Useless...

The young man hadn't noticed the blood dripping from his fist every time he drew back to strike the practice doll again. He had wrangled the target from it's restraints some time ago and now sat atop the inanimate structure beating it into the metal floor. The stuffing had long leaked through the split seams and Valduin merely absently beat his fist through the doll and into the floor.

History has continuously repeated itself. Arumi had abandoned him for the Republic. Leaving him to absently train in that mansion for months never to return. And then the others... they were all the same. Valduin's lust for power had become matched only by his resentment for The Order itself. He was there for its descent. He stood in the ruins of the fallen empire, but he still felt the Sith would be his claim to power. Always training, hate-filled, and without a master he pressed on more through habit than passion. His passion had long since clouded, and now only deep seated disgust, both by the world at-large and his own mortal limitations, pressed him further on his quest into darkness...


Useless...

All of them...

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

[member="Valduin Izbien"]

"Pardon me, if you are done beating that Target dummy to the edge of being together, i think you would profit more from someone who can teach you to actually fight and not just whine and hit a faceless automaton with no threat of it harming you?" She watched him from the edge of the training floor that he had just punched the doll into, not really even caring if the man said yes or no, but he would be useless to the empire in his current state and she needed to fix that right now else he could be just shot out of an Airlock if he was going to be weak.

 

[Valduin Izbien]

Valduin lifted his head and turned until a face met the voice. Had his thoughts really been so loud? Rising from atop the mutilated apparatus he turned to face [member="Alexandra Cinthra"].

"You mistake this for self-loathing?"

He stared with cold eyes toward the woman smaller than he. Silence danced briefly about the chamber for a short time.

"You know, perhaps, of someone?"

He had assumed she alluded to herself, but he was unappreciative of the insult. An eye for an eye seemed only fair...

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

[member="Valduin Izbien"]

"Ya, how about me, the only lightsider in the entire one Sith, im sure you could defeat me with how weak i am?" She still walked around him, carefully and without making another sound past her own voice. "Or perhaps i can not teach you to channel those emotions into something productive, i may not use the darkside but i understand its teachings well enough to teach them without corruption."

 

[Valduin Izbien]

Out of a long practiced habit Valduin slid his foot back and out. Defensively squaring his legs and slightly bending knees he channeled his will towards the lightsaber protruding from his trousers. It fit like the last piece of a puzzle in his hand yet felt so foreign. One day he would build his own, but alas, such a feat would require instruction. His thoughts flashed back to the matter at hand.

Through muscle memory and excessive repetition. He was willing to bet [member="Alexandra Cinthra"] would expect Valduin to quickly fall into the basic stances of Dun Moch as it seemed to be all that was taught to most Acolytes. And so this was exactly how Valduin set his guard. Being of a neutral standing in the force it seemed, it was probable his adversary would dabble with the well balanced form of Nimen. Valduin plotted for this, but knew better than to fully commit his guard to the possibility. He would play defensively and walk through the motions of the basic form, but readily be prepared to adapt as necessary. 'Gage, identify, exploit, kill' He thought to himself. He felt his veins open and his heart began to beat in anticipation with the battle at hand.

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

[member="Valduin Izbien"]

"Ill take that as a maybe." Her hands reached back and instead of grabbing her sabers she tore from behind her the retractable echani warstaff that she kept with her at all times. Letting it out to its full length she took a much different stance than the man had expected, infact it was not right at all as it resembled not a single force stance at all. This was due to the fact it wasn't a lightsaber form she would use on him, no he would know them even if he didn't use them, no she was using a technique that only her people knew, and she would be sure to show him not to expect a force user to stick to the force and its forms.

 

[Valduin Izbien]

'Oh? Well this IS interesting'

It was quite an unorthodox approach. The man knew better than to underestimate any adversary especially one with the title of master, but so often was he underestimated. He wondered if this time would be so. It was both a strength and a weakness that he relied so little on the force from a combatant stand point. He knew that this could be played to his advantage. Just the act of brandishing such a weapon proved that [member="Alexandra Cinthra"] thought him restricted to the basic forms.

Arumi Zy had trained him extensively with and against hundreds if not thousands of various weapons types before ever presenting the weapon he valued above all in this world. Even if he knew not her form he was confident he could at least par due to the weapons strengths and limitations in itself. He didn't seek bloodshed in this spat, but the potential to learn and grow as a warrior was most certainly arising. The ideal of a weapons style taboo and foreign to the fighter excited him, and like a child he waited in anticipation to see what there was to see.

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

Alexandra shot forward and spun the staff around her, using her strength and speed to bring the warstaff down hard from the right shoulder down to his left hip. If this worked he would certainly feel it as it would feel like a unhindered slam int his side, meant to send him flying if he wasn't grounded or ready for it. This is of course granted that the man would be hit and did not react fast enough to the strike, though she did expect that outcome.

[member="Valduin Izbien"]

 

[Valduin Izbien]

The excitement violently surged through Valduin's body instantaneously at [member="Alexandra Cinthra"] charge.

Following the weapon on its evolution around the woman, he adjusted the balance of his feet. As he shifted his weight, the lightsaber leapt to his calling hand and roared to life. With a twisted wrist he brought the blade to meet her strike. Using the momentum from his opponents blow, Valduin allowed himself to slide. In doing so he adverted the otherwise harmful impact from straining his wrist.


He sped inward towards Alexandra hugging close to the staff. Running his blade along his opponents weapon sent sparks dancing beside the duo. In the last moments of his retaliation, he spun fast to strike non-lethally at his opponents arm supporting the staff. His positioning between her and the majority of her own weapon would most certainly limit the possibilities of countering or dodging, but the warrior knew better than to expect contact.

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

[member="Valduin Izbien"]

Alexandra's eyes went wide and in a moment she dropped her body low and twisted to use what was left of her hold on the staff and pulled it up to intercept his blade, while also pushing out her mind and pushing the air around his blade and hand back to slow down the strike just enough to let her absorb the brunt of the hit and not have the blade come down on her. "G-good..." She was smiling, not strained but in a absolute joy at the fact he was going to be an actual challenge. With that she pushed as much of her power into his chest as she dropped her left hand for a single half second, looking to blow him back away from her for her to gain a moment to recoup.

 

[Valduin Izbien]

[member="Alexandra Cinthra"]

Valduin accepted. Not implying there was much choice in the action, but in embracing the surge of his opponents energy, Valduin minimized strain and lost no balance as he slid three to four feet from the master without altering any footing. Focusing his own energy in the center of his chest he gauged the power he allowed himself to endure. Raising himself slowly from the low, aggressive stance he had charged in with, Valduin squared his shoulders and brought both hands to the hilt of saber. He felt he could soak the power of Alexandra's blows, but it would prove to be an unnecessary exertion of energy. Instead, he felt it would be more appropriate to the alter trajectory of her strikes. Precision and speed would be crucial on his part as it would certainly be exercised by his opponent.

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

[member="Valduin Izbien"]

'This is bad, hes better than most sith...' She turned her staff in her hands absorbed his blow, unable to move in such a way that would allow for her to deflect it as he had done so for her own. She forced her arms to endure the strike, her body willing the force for aid in holding it back. Her own footing faltered for a moment but she secured it. "Guess i cant underestimate you." She pushed off and aimed a blow at his head, then aimed another strike at his legs, then once more at his chest, going from one end of her staff to the other and back, aiming to get the speed she needed to knock him off his feet.

 

[Valduin Izbien]

A flurry of blows was leveled at the warrior. This was as expected. Still, even the expected variable proved a challenge as he tossed away her strikes. Careful not to overly-dramatize his blocks and cause a 1/10th second opening, he exercised only the necessary power to knock her blows from side to side. One hole was all she needed.

Despite his calculations, [member="Alexandra Cinthra"] was finely attuned to her weapon and handled it with pristine finesse. Valduin had no choice but to back up, or risk losing his footing and loosing the entire duel. The first strike targeted his head. Valduin watched as it's trajectory missed by mere inches thanks to a quick swat. Her staff left it unnecessary to reset to strike again. She could flow straight into the next blow, and then in the same suit the next.

Valduin had been defensive as of thus far, and wondered of his opponent's thoughts. At any rate, hastefully or not, Valduin settled on a sacrificial and aggressive move. Steadily backing and blocking, Valduin avoided the strike to the head as well as that to the chest, but in the seconds prior to impact of the attack threatening his legs, Valduin turned so that the blow would strike back of his calves. Wanting to soak as much force as possible, he focused his energy in his wrist and brought the saber back to absorb as much of the blow as one hand would allow. The staff gave the advantage of range to Alexandria, and her speed was no help to Valduin's cause. He had to slow her. With the leg closest to his opponent he waited for her strike. The moments of it's impact would be the moment her feet would be most firmly planted.

The pain of her strike had just begun to surge through his leg as he brought his other foot hard towards her knee hoping to bend it inward.

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

[member="Valduin Izbien"]

Alexandra smiled as she hit his leg, problem was his other foot shot into her knee. And oh how that hurt like she had been slammed in the chest by a Mass Driver ([member="HK-36"] Tribute). Her smile ended as the pain shot up her leg and into her chest, and instead of disabling her it did take out the knee for the moment but had a very.. unfortunate recoil. Without pause to guage if the man could defend against something like what she was about to do, she aimed as much force energy into her and this time held no restriction as she send the energy point blank into his chest, taking no effort to rein in the power and more so focused on sending him flying as far as possible. It would only be until after this that she would raise her hands and utter two words. "I surrender."

 

[Valduin Izbien]

Valduin felt the static-like surge he had felt the last time she had built up the energy to shove him. This time, however, it was far louder striking him like a fierce ringing in his ears. He felt that he was winning the psychological game as this was indeed a desperate move. The only obstacle the man had left to overcome would be to survive the master's sustained force attack. Damage would be done no doubt. Valduin's force capabilities lacked trajectory or targeted augmentations, but his control over it's effects on himself were strong. Focusing the vast majority of his power into his chest he turned to face [member="Alexandra Cinthra"]. Her move was desperate and so his would be equally so.

The surge was no longer static-like but a steady hum in his ears. Ready for the attack Valduin stepped forward inverting his lightsaber for the extra support from his forearm to absorb any of the initial energy he might. The sound equaled that of a ship punching through the atmosphere of a planet. Dust from the floors skated towards the walls and the practice target Valduin had mutilated violently leaped towards the walls as well. When Valduin felt his wrist losing the battle he disengaged the lightsaber, lest risking a personal injury, and sent the energy from his arms to support his back leg. The onslaught was unrelenting as his aura struggled to defend against hers. He could not battle on equal terms through the force alone.

Valduin had an idea.

As fast as the man could move he brought his boot hard towards the masters injured knee. Pushing his own energy away from his chest and into his own leg to ensure this would end the match for one of them, he felt the ground struggling beneath him to keep him anchored, and his ribs were absorbing far to much from the shove. In fact, he was sure two of them were cracked. Still he pressed on. With as much force as he could muster he drove his metal boot hard at her knee before being tossed through the air.

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

Alexandra shot into full emersion, smiling as she once more felt the same power that had been lost to her in the weeks before this. This man was one of the first to meet Alexandra with her abilities back to full strength, having been halved by the loss of Hel. It was in this moment her aura surged and enveloped her and her arms moved much much faster than before using the force to speed up her reflexes and strength as she slammed the staff into the ground and held it stiff as the foot came down on it. "G-good try." She smiled with a glint in her eyes after the staff had connected with his foot she would drop it and grab her sabers, laughing as she held the blades tight.

This would obviously leave her open for a second, a second she would not let them determine her loss. Her hands turned the blades, keeping them ready as she would cross them in an X as quickly as possible, hoping to stop a counterattack, though his own reaction time would determine if she would be able to stop it or take a strike to the chest.

[member="Valduin Izbien"]

 

[Valduin Izbien]

A taunt?

Mistake.

Valduin was fast, and with no thought on his part merely reacted out of instinct. Waiting before igniting his blade he slammed the hilt hard towards her exposed chest. As his strike soared towards it's mark he flicked hard causing the blade to roar to life. It would be a close race he knew.

Regardless this was not the focal point to his approach. In fact he was counting on her dodging the otherwise fatal strike. She had dropped the spear to draw her sabers. As it fell, Valduin brought his other foot over the spear, and dragging it back caused the spear to swing hard at the back of [member="Alexandra Cinthra"]'s legs.

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

[member="Valduin Izbien"]

Alexandra responded a moment too late, the staff taking out her feet as she fell back. 'This is gonna hurt...' She felt her eyes turning towards the roof before time stopped for a moment and she grinned. Her hands fell behind her and she vaulted off them, her reflexs inhuman and sped up by the force to an extent that they had seemed to move in such a way she should never have been able to. Her feet set as she landed on them a few meters back and then her sabers sprang to life, a glance directly at and into her opponent. 'Oh how i am going to miss the strength of the Sith's experienced warriors...' The words rang in her mind as she grinned, a scene that in her stance and expression would be mistaken for her darker personality, Hel, had it not been for the pure lightside aura she kept at all times now.

 

[Valduin Izbien]

Valduin, displeased but not surprised by her expedite recovery, stretched his shoulders and adjusted his own stance. The two could very well be at this all night. "You aura is different than that of most here, and your speed... unique" Although Valduin met both accusations as a compliment, they came across more judgmental and sharp than anything else. What else could be expected from the ever angry warrior?

[member="Alexandra Cinthra"]

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

"Thanks, you are unique yourself." She grinned and spun her sabers in her hands once more, but this time the movement didn't stop and instead left her to charge him as they still went, only stopping the instant before her strike. Her Sabers, set to training mode, would be aimed down and as she made the strike it would be in complete unison with the opposite hand, making an X across his chest as she put the same speed in the strike as her recovery.

[member="Valduin Izbien"]