Round One - Padawans Kitra and Soloman

[Coci Heavenshield]

The arena is set for the second annual Silver Sanctum Coalition Tournament.

Many Jedi have gathered to witness the ‘battles’ between the combatants, from Padawans to Knights and Masters, all battling to see who will rise to the top, who will be the cream of the crop?, the icing on the cake?, the best of the best?. It is early morning, the sun has risen to herald a bright new day, avian circle in the Voss sky, the flowers are blooming and the bees are buzzing and there is excitement in the air. And lots of chatter ..

In the arena there is a seat at the end of the room, on which Grand Master [member="Thurion Heavenshield"] will watch over the tournament. With brushed back golden hair, beard trimmed and a set of sapphire blue eyes, and a calming demeanour, the grand master will cast those wondrous eyes upon his Jedi charges and step in if and I say IF, the duelling gets ‘out of hand’.

Before the duelling shall commence, each combatant will acknowledge his presence with a respectful bow and so to, to your competitor, before they begin.

[member="Valae Kitra"] vs [member="Solomon"]

You may begin!

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

Nervous was an understatement. Valae Kitra’s heart was racing like never before, each beat sounding in her head like a mighty drum. The padawan stepped forward; the toes of her boots just touched the edge of the mat. Her dark eyes dropped towards the floor, would she be ready to take the next step? As she had already agreed to compete, there was no turning back now. With a deep inhale Valae shed her brown robe and set it aside.

“Okay... you can do this.” She said quietly to herself, looking about apprehensively.

Brown eyes closed slowly, and she attempted to will her worries into nothingness. Valae turned to see Thurion seated, ready to oversee the match and she offered him a quiet smile. He was much more than Grandmaster to her; he was also a trusted friend and her teacher. She still remembered the night that he brought her to Voss, and also remembered her silent vow to make him proud. No matter the outcome of today’s match, she hoped that she would fulfill that promise.

The padawan’s brown boots finally took a hesitant step forward, bringing her onto the mat where she would face her opponent. Valae didn’t recognize the other padawan, but there were still so many she had yet to meet around the Silver Temple. For a few moments she could only concentrate on how much taller he was, making her petite 5’3” frame look rather small in comparison. She offered the man a small nod in greeting, and then made her low and respectful bow to him.

And then she turned to bow in the direction of the Grandmaster. It was time to start, and she assumed a ready stance, waiting to see what her opponent’s first move would be.

[member="Solomon"]

 

[Solomon]

[member="Coci Heavenshield"] [member="Valae Kitra"]


Solomon stepped into the arena and was visibly taken aback at the number of eyes centered on the square patch where the duel was to take place. Any more than ten pairs of folk about him tended to make the mute uncomfortable. He took a deep breath and centered himself. Calm. A new concept for someone who'd lived in perpetual strife for an overwhelming majority of his existence. The Jedi had certainly helped with his bubbling pot of mental problems, but there was almost always a polite distance. Besides the fact that only a certain number of beings could sign with him competently, the level of his trauma was foreign to many of them. On the rare occasion he decided to share.

Solomon looked at his opponent and took a respectful bow before facing the Grand Master and doing the same in turn. While his opponent was smaller in stature he didn't allow himself to feel as though he had an advantage. He'd made that mistake once. When he was sixteen in the sewers beneath the wretched planet he was born on and it'd cost him his left ring and pinky. A reminder as constant as having no tongue and losing an eye.

Solomon held his training saber loosely and unignited in his right hand, eyeing his opponent with a critical gaze as he ever so slowly began to move in her direction.

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

Valae’s hand found her training saber and ignited the blade in preparation. She angled her head down just slightly, her dark eyes trying desperately not to betray the anxiety within. The padawan stood still and ready, her hand twitched ever so slightly when her Solomon began to move. Every step brought him closer, his approach was slow and steady. There was something in his eyes that made Valae wonder if he had a plan, especially since he had yet to ignite his saber.

What was Valae’s plan? She had one in mind, and knew that it could very well lead to taking a hit... but there was also a chance to catch him off guard. It was worth a try, right? It may have looked like she was simply waiting, but she was carefully gathering the force to her. Before Solomon was too close, she suddenly sprang forward, pushing off her back foot with a small boost from the force. She struck out with her saber, making a simple strike aiming for Solomon’s right shoulder.

Valae knew that her blow would likely be blocked, but she didn’t mind so much. This was more a test to see what her opponent would do, how fast his reflexes were, and how he would counter her. There was much that could be gleaned from such a simple attack.

[member="Solomon"]

 

[Solomon]

[member="Coci Heavenshield"]


Solomon shifted as [member="Valae Kitra"] lunged at him, throwing himself out of the way of the incoming attack and planting himself parallel a few feet away. The move's speed caught him off guard, and the saber came very close to it's mark. Solomon had yet to get used to fighting other forcies. There weren't a ton of them amongst the merchant fleet and slave populations.

He ignited the saber and gave a quick slash towards her right leg.

The both seemed to be playing a similar game thus far. Cautious.

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

Valae was slightly surprised that Solomon had dodged her attack completely; perhaps he was feeling out her technique as well. Not a moment later her opponent had lit up his weapon and sent it towards her leg. Her own saber angled down and caught his strike against it, but barely in time... Their blades were locked momentarily, but his strength was too much for her to rebound with an attack.

The female padawan pushed off with her saber, and withdrew just out of his range.

Valae began to move again, slowly pacing a circle around Solomon, watching his every movement closely. Now it seemed they were caught in a bit of a dance, and one would need to push in order to progress. She was contemplating her next move, and working to gather the force to her again... just to be prepared.

[member="Solomon"]

 

[Solomon]

[member="Valae Kitra"]

The lock that resulted strained Solomon's arm a hell of a lot more than he'd have liked. He strained and moved the momentum upward from the pivot point towards chest level. He began tapping into the force in the limited matter he'd been taught to increase the amount of strength he was putting behind the saber while trying to level it with his few fingers on his left hand.

He locked eyes with his his opponent. Allowing his periphels and limited force abilities to act as a conduit for the rest of his surroundings. The crowd, the grandmaster, the other side of his opponent's form. All hidden until he opened his mind.

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

Valae's gaze was locked with Solomon's, and she continued to move around him slowly. Her saber was in a somewhat relaxed position, pointing towards the mat. Both seemed a bit hesitant to take up the offensive, but she knew that they couldn't continue on this way... Well, they could... but it would not make for a very exciting duel.

She drew in a deep breath and began to advance on Solomon again, her foot work was steady and slow at first, but began to build in speed as she approached. This time she she aimed a simple strike at the man's wrist.

Valae had planned to use the force to create a shield against any counter strike, as she had just recently learned to do so... however, there was the fact that she was not very good with juggling multiple tasks, and that she had never attempted to employ the technique during a duel...

She would just have to see what the next moment brought her way.

[member="Solomon"]

 

[Solomon]

Solomon pressed forward as [member="Valae Kitra"] made her slow advance. The momentum shifted ever so slightly and Solomon moved with it. Retreat one step. Then another. Then another.

Then she flicked her wrist and launched an attack at his. Solomon rolled with it, flipping the saber about before launching a counter towards her left shoulder.

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

Her attack hadn't fully hit its target, but perhaps glanced it just slightly. In the blink of an eye, she found herself trying to accomplish too much in such a short span of time. Valae had gathered the force to her, and was concentrating on creating a shield around herself... but she hadn't been fast enough. Her focus broke completely when she felt the impact of her opponent's training saber against her left shoulder. The force of the blow sent her down onto the floor, and she looked up a bit stunned for a moment.

The padawan shook her head to regain her focus, and got to her fer as swiftly and gracefully as she could. She made sure to maintain a bit of a defensive posture, just in case Solomon should attempt to strike before she was fully ready. And now she stood facing him again, this time there was a small and friendly smile upon her face. It had almost felt like making a new friend, even though she had taken a hit.

She would not be so hesitant now, finding herself feeling a bit more comfortable. Valae's hand shot out towards Solomon, and she aimed a small force push in his direction. The move hadn't been intended to blow him back completely, just perhaps knock him off balance. The next moment she followed up with a strike that arched high, and came down towards his leg.

[member="Solomon"]