Personal Space (Sage v. Keira)

[Keira Priest]

It felt like all of her life lately had been comprised of a series of battles, whether for survival or simply sparring matches such as this. But Keira would be lying if she said that she exactly minded the idea, as they allowed her to hone her skills and fine tune any and all techniques. This was no different, although perhaps the one she was fighting would be an exception. Instead of the trained combatants she was used to engaging, [member="Sage Bane"] was an improvisational fighter, and one that hadn’t had any formal training lent to him. To top that off he was currently training to be a Jedi, or so he’d told her.

This wouldn’t be a fight with lightsabers, however, or any kind of weaponry. It was to be a barehanded match, simple hand-to-hand combat coupled with whatever underhanded tactics they chose to employ. A fighting style she hadn’t had cause to use in a long time, and one that could use a bit of brushing up on. But she wasn’t one to back down from any kind of challenge, so there she stood on one side of the arena, waiting for her opponent to make his entrance.

Dressed in a pair of loose-fitting shorts that hung to just below her knees and a tanktop that was just shy of being fitted, there was nothing remarkable about her appearance to note. With her hair still growing out from her ordeal just shy of a month previous, it was still much too short to pull up. Standing barefooted with her hands taped in anticipation of the fight, she rocked on the balls of her feet as she listened to the music begin to play throughout the arena.

“Come on, you itiohul. Are you too afraid to fight a girl?”

 

[Sage Bane]

To a stranger’s eye, Sage Bane might have looked like another rangy glit-biter, but what most didn’t know was that there was a skilled warrior hiding underneath the junkie facade. Sure some of his skills had deteriorated over too much time. Unfortunately, if it came down to a choice, Sage would rather spend time flying high on a dirty mattress than owning the battlefield, but the fact that most of his skills were honed at a very young age, made him a formidable opponent indeed.

Why did Sage agree to fight Keira Ticon? Boredom? Proof that he wasn’t what she thought he was? Or the other spectators in the club for that matter? It might have been those things, but more likely it was a response to an incident in the new Red Ravens secretary’s office, and the sting of rejection which had been accompanied by a Force push in the chest. His vanity wouldn’t allow him to walk away without saving face. And so here they were facing off.

It had been a while since he fought without a weapon, but he was so ready. Plus the young Jedi padawan would get to practice using his Force powers against the dark padawan before him. He was dressed in loose workout pants, with a tank top over his stringy frame, and his feet were bare. He stood with feet shoulder width apart and bounced on his heels, his body loose and ready to go. At her paltry little attempt at trash-talking, Sage just giggled. Then he spread his arms wide and looked around himself.

"Looking around for reasons I should be afraid. Nope, I can't find any." then Sage slipped into the dirty slug tongue he'd grown up speaking. "All I see before me is a weak little chik who's going to get her bayana kicked by a junkie."

[member="Keira Ticon"]

 

[Keira Priest]

While she listened to him speak Keira drew the Force into her body and mind, causing her aura to take on a sharper presence that would resonate with any of those sensitive to the Force nearby. Although she didn't speak Huttese fluently by any means, she was able to infer just what he was saying. Her first instinct was to respond to his comments with more of her own, and that's exactly what she did. "Funny you say that, because all I see is a junkie that's in over his head. What, you couldn't handle one girl not wanting to jump into bed with you, funtihruo?"

As she spoke she gathered her wits about her, feet sliding shoulder width apart, though nothing else about her stance immediately changed. Having had an experience or two that didn't end so well after she made the first move, it was decided by her that taking more of a passive-aggressive approach, at least in more formal fighting environments like this, would serve. Besides, opponents such as Sage were usually almost too easy to provoke. One well-placed insult, and all of their so-called composure came crashing down.

Mentally she reviewed possible scenarios for how this particular fight would begin. Her left arm would be her advantage, it being cybernetic, but it would also be one she wouldn't want to exploit right away. If Sage was half as intelligent as he was good at running his mouth, he would be expecting that. Then again, it did seem that he'd underestimated her a bit. That was always something she could play to her advantage.

After a moment more she slowly raised her right hand, palm out, towards him. Without another word, merely a twitch of a smile on her lips, she released a burst of the Force from that hand intended to throw him backwards in a manner similar to what had happened in her office only a day or so ago. "Seem familiar, itiohul?"

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

At Keira's insults, Sage shrugged a shoulder. Sure she was picking at his wound, but it only served to make him that much more resolved to play his cards close to his vest. Surprisingly he said nothing, but locked eyes with her, grinning. Sage knew an attack was forthcoming. Keira's energy resonated throughout the room, and he could sense that his opponent was calling up her powers. While she took a moment to assess him, he concentrated on calling his own Force powers, however unreliable they were to him in his untrained state.

Sage closed his eyes and opened his mind as Master Rexus had taught him during their games of push feather. Sage focused on letting the energy flow into him, connecting himself with the Force. Almost like a drug, he could feel it flowing through his body, harnessing it to bend it to his will. It was almost better than a drug, he reflected. Maybe Master Rexus wouldn't have to kick him out of the temple after all.

As she released her blast of energy, Sage stuck out his arm, palm raised and fingers spread, releasing a Force push of his own to counter hers. He stumbled, but ultimately stood firm and resisted the attack. If she was unprepared for his counter-move, she would fall backwards herself.

[member="Keira Ticon"]

 

[Keira Priest]

Most would have once again countered the attack or simply sidestepped it, but Keira was hardly most people. So instead she let the energy connect, allowing it to carry her while anyone else would have resisted, twisting in the air to land on her feet, slowly straightening. Again she studied him, smirking with a sardonic tone to her voice. "Not bad." She flexed her fingers, gauging her next move, one side of her mouth turning up in a half-smile. "For a Jedi."

Closing the distance between them she started out in what constituted as a slow manner for her, leading with a punch from her right that she turned into a kick with her left foot using the same momentum, thus far not augmenting her movements with the Force. That would come in time, if at all, but for the moment she was slowly building up a rhythm, any concerns she had melting away to allow her to focus fully on the task at hand.

All things considered, this fight was moving at a slow pace, in her book. Most times her opponents outclassed her on some level, but it seemed this time they were evenly matched, at least when it came to something like this.

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

Since Sage's Force powers were unreliable at best, he was almost surprised that he was able to shield himself from her push. Especially since his body was still bruised from the last time she'd used that move on him. He smirked. The man knew his mouth had a way of riling people up to the breaking point. He prided himself on it. Sage watched Keira levitate off the ground and land much more gracefully than he would have. The half-Chiss smirked and crouched his body low in a wrestling position in anticipation of her counter-move. "Bring it," he said, with a deep growl, twisting his mouth into a sidelong grin, his eyes flashing red for a moment.

Moving toward him rapidly, and delivering an artful blow with her right fist, the Chiss hybrid executed a side parry to meet her punch, pushing her hand to the side, leaving her body open. Her kick hit him right in the gut, but not before he managed to throw a rear hook to her torso with a grunt. The kick hurt like a queen, but not enough to knock him over.

"Is that all you got?" he coughed out as her foot painfully connected with his abdomen. Sage had many dirty tricks up his sleeve from years of fighting in the slave pits, but he wanted to see what she could bring to the table before his blows got too low.

[member="Keira Ticon"]

 

[Keira Priest]

His cockiness was almost appreciated, because overconfidence meant overestimation, which ultimately led to him overexerting himself too soon, if she'd gauged his personality closely enough. The reason she knew this was simple, and it was because nine times out of ten she shared the same selfsure attitude. This was no exception. It was already beginning to wear on her, however, as his fist connected, causing her to stumble slightly but ultimately right herself, not pausing in her forward movement although abdomen was telling her to do just that.

Instead she continued with the velocity garnered by the kick, this time punching with her left arm, the cybernetic one. It was a trick she hadn't wanted to reveal right away, but if there was one way to deal with people like Sage, it was to not let up and show no signs of weakness, one of them being stopping any kind of offensive maneuver. He could think her an easy mark all he wanted, because she would do her best to prove him wrong.

Regardless of whether her punch connected or not she distanced herself with a flip backwards, hopefully before he was able to counter, though she wasn't counting on it. They might not have been fighting with any weapons, but she would still utilize Ataru where she saw fit. Old habits died hard, as the saying went, and her acrobatics were the oldest of them all.

"On the contrary." Her grin was almost mocking. "The question is, can you do better?"

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

As another punch headed his way, this one from Keira's cyberarm, Sage's fists shot up to protect his face as rotated his hips to quickly dodge back away from it. With his life consumed by pleasure-seeking pursuits, Sage hadn't realized how much he missed sparring, especially since he'd been so adept at it in his youth. Adrenaline coursed through his body with a euphoric rush that almost rivaled spice.

Sage grinned as she flipped backwards, letting her land and taunt him a bit before he launched into his next attack. He ran headlong at Keira and launched into a flying kick, aimed straight for her chest. The move was one he'd learned from a martial artist on Nar Hasska at yet another slave fighting tournament he had been dragged to. Jomma the Hutt often liked to bet on his little prize fighter and had called in some trainers to make sure the odds were stacked in his favor. Throughout the years, Sage learned a mishmash of fighting tricks here and there, but his flashy jump kick was one he was particularly proud of.

[member="Keira Ticon"]

 

[Keira Priest]

One of the last things she'd expected from Sage was any kind of formal martial arts, so his kick was a refreshing angle of attack. Unexpected, certainly, but appreciated in a way that only one who had some degree of respect for their opponent could. And, no matter how much she wouldn't admit, Keira did have some about of appreciation for the skills Sage was thus far exhibiting on the battlefield. That didn't, however, mean she would be giving any quarter or showing any outward impressions of such.

A part of it was because she did want to show off just a bit, though she would be hard-pressed to admit it. Her skills in a fight, or at least one where she was evenly matched, was something she took pride in. And it was something she intended to exploit, one way or another. Whether or not it would be to her ultimate benefit was an entirely different matter altogether.

Redirecting a kick or a punch was a relatively simple affair, when it was as simple as what was considered the standard for either of those. This would require a bit more finesse to deal with, or maybe just some creativity. As he flew at her she slid under his reach, with a twitch of her fingers attempting to snag him with the Force and unbalance his landing.

With a crooked grin she straightened, flexing her hands, a renewed fire in her eyes. "C'mon, funtihruo. Is that all they're teaching you kids these days?"

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

As he came flying towards her, Sage saw no surprise on Keira's face. If she found his moves unexpected, she was good at keeping up a poker face. The young human ducked down with a slide forwards. As he'd expected to land the kick, Sage found himself landing awkwardly, especially with that little Force interference he could feel. He meant to bring the knee of the kicking leg back and land in a fighting stance, but he moved the wrong leg back and stumbled, twisting his ankle the wrong way. Leaning a hand down to steady himself on the ground he sprang back up.

The half-Chiss's left ankle was on fire, and the pain of it made his eyes involuntarily flash red. Kark. He had landed worse than he thought. Knowing that Keira would take full advantage of his injury, he whirled around to face her. And as she taunted him again, he took that time to get his bearings and his breath back. He would waste no time with a retort. Since another kick was out of the question, Sage crouched low again and lunged at her, getting in close and throwing a lightning-quick snap punch right to her face, one of the dirtier tricks he'd learned on Nal Hutta.

[member="Keira Ticon"]

 

[Keira Priest]

The fact that she was able to inflict any sort of injury did nothing but raise her morale, but Keira knew just as well as most that becoming too confident too soon would only hasten one's own downfall. Still, she let a smile turn up the corners of her mouth nonetheless, sliding her feet shoulder width apart once more. Though he might have been physically injured, anyone could sense that Sage's fighting spirit was far from quelled in any sense. That was just as well.

However, the deadly quick snap that shot out towards her was something even her Force senses didn't detect, and his fist connected with her jaw with a sharp crack that seemed to echo in the silence of the arena. Despite being stunned she managed to cushion her landing with the Force, preventing anything worse than bruises she could already feel forming. She would be paying for that one in the morning, and abundantly so.

Slowly she pushed herself to her feet, reaching up one hand to probe her jaw, a grimace flashing briefly across her face before she let her hands fall, looking on Sage with a new appreciation of his skills. Not bad at all. Now she wanted to see if he could keep up that same pace. Making a single hit was one thing, but continuing the pattern was another. And she wanted to push both of their limits.

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

The half-Chiss could tell that she either underestimated him or wasn't as adept at street fighting as he. The latter wouldn't have surprised him. After all, scuffles on the streets of Corellia hardly compared the viciousness of the Hutt slave pits, of which the outcome was almost always life or death. Sage had a fleeting flash of memory, the time he strangled another slave with the boy's own chain. It was painful to remember his old life, but necessary when facing an opponent as skilled as Keira.

Smiling broadly as she rubbed her jaw, Sage wasn't about to let Keira get off easy. "Kick while they're down," was the young man's fighting creedo. As she began to get bearings, he concentrated on calling the Force into his body again, letting it flow into every cell. Lifting his arm slowly upwards, he reached it towards her, and curled his fingers towards his body, almost beckoning. Sage then focused all of the energy on manipulating the space between he and his adversary, attempting to pull her towards him so violently that she was swept off her feet. If successful, the move would leave her flat on her back, and underneath his legs.

[member="Keira Ticon"]

 

[Keira Priest]

"Fil de a chiesulino!" The pull of the Force on her lower body was a vaguely expected nuisance, but still a hindrance all the same. However, Keira had already been caught off guard once, and she wasn't one to make the same mistake twice. To counter she attempted to break his hold on her with a Force push of her own, his attack still leaving her unbalanced for a split second. Alright, so maybe he was faster and a bit more skilled in his manipulation of the Force than she'd originally anticipated. The Jedi must have been teaching him something right.

This was beginning to turn more into a test of who could utilize the Force in a more concise and accurate manner, and less of the hand-to-hand combat she'd come expecting. At the same time it meant Sage was growing in his grasp on the energy field, if he was able to call on it almost instinctively. Good for him, at least. "Maybe you're not quite all talk. We'll have to see about a lightsaber next, if they ever decide to give you one." Though she wouldn't admit it, she was beginning to gain a sort of grudging respect for him, even if it was just in regards to his skills in battle.

After a moment of assessing her current options, she decided that if he wasn't going to hold back, nor was she. With the briefest of smiles she turned into kick, augmenting this one with the Force, sending out a wave of telekinetic energy with the motion. It might have been an underhanded move, but it didn't seem he was above such tactics, and she wouldn't show him any undue kindness.

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

So maybe between his legs wasn't the best place to have a fighter like Keira. When her saw her foot come flying towards him he instinctively covered his manhood, and in that instance, it left him woefully unprepared to withstand her telekinetic pulse.

Sage was flung backward, landing flat on his back with an "oof." Why were women always trying to kick or punch him in that spot? The wind was knocked out of him, and between the blow and his bad lung capacity, Sage found himself unable to do anything for a few minutes besides cough and wheeze. The Jedi healers at the Ession temple had almost gotten his lungs healed, but the deathstick damage wouldn't allow itself to be undone that quickly. He had a long road of recovery ahead.

Once he was breathing again, he scrambled to his feet. Panting, his sweaty hair matted to his face, the half-Chiss got back into his fighting stance, positioning his hands loosely in front of his face in a defensive boxing posture. Grinning as he shook the sweat from his hair, Sage beckoned with one hand. Taunting her. "Come on, cheeka," he said between painful-sounding wheezes.

"Once more this time with feeling."

[member="Keira Ticon"]

 

[Keira Priest]

Taking her time, Keira watched him for a long moment, the faintest of smirks on her lips, reminiscent of how a predator observed its prey, content already in the victory that was just around the corner. Some may have called her arrogant, and they wouldn't be entirely wrong, but she was entirely certain in all that she was capable of. And she was sure that it was within her skill set to subdue Sage within the next few seconds with little issue.

One side of her mouth twitched up in a half-smile, and she took a measured breath, gathering the Force within her core, holding it there until it was nearly palpable to her senses and then allowing it to wash through her body, an almost calming wave. Paying no mind to his teasing she simply inclined her head slightly, not speaking. Her hands flexed nearly imperceptibly, tension humming in the air, though it could have just as easily been her own Force abilities.

And it was those she employed just seconds later, slowly raising her right hand palm out towards him. Seconds of nothing passed before she released the energy that had been compressed and gathered there, a strike that would send Sage flying backwards towards the wall, not quite letting him go just there and instead holding him in place with the same tendrils. Closing the distance between them, she leaned in, that same self-confident smile still on her face. "Careful what you wish for."

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

As Sage faced her, sweat pooled at his feet. He was painfully aware that she knew the last of his bravado was faked. Exhaustion was slowly settling in, and it wouldn't be long before he would start coughing and sputtering as he usually did when he reached the limits of his training. Sage was loathe to give up, but he was obviously winded, while she on the other hand, looked as fresh as a daisy.

Finally, Keira made the decision for him by blasting him backwards against the durasteel wall. As he clunked his head against the wall, he knew there wasn't any coming back from the blow. She held him there against the wall in an invisible vice-like grip.

"Ok," he choked, completely out of breath. "No more," An ugly sounding wheeze escaped his throat.

"I give."

[member="Keira Ticon"]