The Force of Fear

[Hadrian Bjormund]

"Yeah you're right, this'll do." Mac said, still looking around the remains of the arena. He could easily picture it all, maybe this spar will have an odd sense of nostalgia for him. Mac turned to [member="Lady Kay"] and looked at her. If she wanted a headstart, Mac was going to give her one on his terms and have some fun with it. Mac had to make sure that she wasn't fully prepared after all. Besides, it'll get her adrenaline pumping. He pulled out his axes right next to Kay and started counting down.

"5"

"4"

"3"

You better start running....

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Macoda Haberon"] started counting down. Kay didn't notice him pulling out his axes as she was looking out at the arena, plotting where to go.

By the time he got down to 3, she kicked her butt in gear and jumped down into the lower level, rolling as she landed. Quickly Kay got to her feet and made the first left turn that she could, followed by a right and pumped her legs as quickly as she could on a straight path. Mac's legs were longer, so he wouldn't have to work as hard as she did to gain distance.

Her water bottle was held tightly in her hand as she made another right turn and then stopped behind a wall, catching her breath and listening for Mac's footfalls. That is if he even ran after her at all.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac took his sweet time in watching [member="Lady Kay"] scramble off into the labyrinth below. He was patient when it came to these situations, he knew that Kay would lose him if he chased after her. But Mac would find her soon enough. He jumped into the labyrinth below and readied his axes in a defensive position. Nothing but ambushes waits for him down here, he needed to be careful. Mac didn't get a good look on where she headed.

"2"

Mac looked around through the maze of crumbling rock. His ears perked up, anticipating any noise. But Kay was hiding. He heard nothing. Suddenly, something on the ground caught his eye. His attention was drawn to the rock floor which was covered in dirt and dust like the rest of the canyon. A wide smile crept across Mac's face.

Footprints...


"1"

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay didn't hear [member="Macoda Haberon"] as he jumped into the arena. Her own footfalls as she ran was loud enough. In fact she heard nothing at all. Was he even moving? How light was Mac on his feet? She wasn't sure.

One might peek around the corner, but she didn't want to do that. Instead she pushed herself from the wall and began moving slowly and quietly ahead. She bent over at the waist, trying to keep herself below the bottom of the holes where there were once makeshift windows. Her eyes darted from side to side at every point where she came into a junction.

Her plan was simple. Go into a circle, come back around to where she came instead of going to the back. In her mind it was the less obvious choice.

With all of her thoughts on where she wanted to be, Kay didn't even think about footprints.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac crouched down, following [member="Lady Kay"]'s footprints as quickly as he could without making much sound. Mac was light on his feet for a man of his size and possessed considerable speed yet he knew that it wouldn't be enough to catch up to Kay outright, he needed to be stealthy. He kept crouched, as Mac was aware that one could see the top of his head over the walls should he stand straight up. Mac followed her footprints but was surprised when they rounded off at the back wall. She didn't seem to be slowing down or hiding at the opposite end of the arena, but instead continued on.

Was she making a circle?

Mac holstered his axes, in these especially narrow halls, the long axes wouldn't do him much good. He stopped as he saw the footprints veering to the right. She could be making a circle. If that was the case, then he would need to head her off, lest she come full circle and discover Mac's own footprints. Mac carefully peaked around the corner, making sure that the footprints did indeed continue to veer to the right. He needed to make a gamble that it would continue to go to that direction and make a full circle.

Mac started heading back the way he came, making sure that he stayed quiet. If he managed to reach Kay before she got where Mac thought that she was heading, then it would be Mac's turn to lie in wait.

 

[Kay-Larr]

As far as she knew, her plan was working. Kay continued on her route, not really going in a straight line, but weaving in a zig-zag pattern towards the front of the arena where she had jumped in.

At times her gaze was drawn upward. At some point she may have to climb and run along the top of the walls. That might help keep her out of reach. But not now.

Where was [member="Macoda Haberon"] ? She stopped for a moment, hiding herself behind one of the walls as she listened. There was nothing. Either he wasn't moving or he was very stealthy, neither of which could be good. Not moving meant that he was waiting and plotting. Being stealthy meant that the danger he posed was increased. Still she refrained from using the Force to cheat.

Kay continued on, yet as she rounded a corner, she stood upright. Mac was right there in plain view. He was waiting. She quickly scrambled up one of the walls, using the holes to help her up. Once on top, she started to run across, although due to trying to maintain her balance, she couldn't run at full speed.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

[member="Lady Kay"]'s sudden appearance somewhat startled Mac himself. He didn't think that she would appear so quickly. After a slight hesitation, Mac thundered after Kay though she was far enough to climb the wall before he got there. Mac swore as he saw Kay climbing, there would be no way that he would be able to climb after her, the crumbling walls wouldn't support his weight. However Mac had another idea, he needed to bring Kay back down onto his level.

With Kay now running on top of the wall, trying carefully to keep her balance, Mac ran after her and unholstered one of his axes. Though she was fast, traveling on the wall had slowed her down enough for Mac to catch up to her. Mac whipped his ax at the back of Kay's leg, hopefully he would hook her leg and bring her down off the wall, or at least clip her foot and send her tumbling down.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay saw [member="Macoda Haberon"] catching up to her from the corner of her eye, yet she needed to concentrate on where she was going so that she wouldn't fall off. Doing that also caused her to miss the axe coming her way. It hooked her foot and she tripped, stumbling on top of the wall.

As she lay on her stomach, looking down to the ground below, she knew that she was in trouble. Her first instinct was to slide off the other side, and so she did. Her landing was rough, she could feel the shock of it going through her ankles and up her legs. After a pause that lasted a second or two, Kay undid her water bottle's lid and waited for Mac to come to this side of the wall so that she could throw some of her water into his face. That'd be all that she'd need for a distraction so that she could run again.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac's move worked, for a moment. The beard of his axe hooked around [member="Lady Kay"]'s foot and sent her stumbling, however she managed to fall on the side opposite of Mac. He swore with the wall now separating him and Kay. Mac holstered his ax and sprinted to the end of the hall where he rounded the corner and charged where he expected Kay would be. His boots thudded against the hard floor. This was proving more difficult than he initially thought.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay heard [member="Macoda Haberon"] swear after she landed roughly on the other side of the wall. How could she not hear him? It echoed through the arena, bouncing from one crumbling stone wall to the next. Then she heard his boots as he ran, no longer did he seem to care to be sneaky. As soon as he came close enough yet still out of reach, she threw some of the water from her bottle upwards to his face. Without looking to see where it landed, she quickly turned and ran.

Lucky for her that Mac didn't carry any darts. She felt better in here, having only been here once before. It was a great place to use the surrounding environment to her advantage.

Now she needed to go up again, but this time up to where the audience you to sit and stand to watch. She pumped her legs as fast as she could in order to reach the wall and start climbing. It was higher than the others and didn't have window holes. So she had to be more careful, all the while trying to get up to the top before Mac could reach her and pull her down. Hopefully the old stone didn't crumble beneath her hands and feet.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

The water hit Mac square in the face, it was the last thing he had expected. It was such a ridiculous move that he just had to just stand there a laugh for a second as he wiped the water from his face, letting Kay get a head start down the corridor.

Water? Really?

It didn't really matter to Mac, he sprinted down the corridor with a smile on his face. He was starting to have fun with this, it was definitely proving to be a challenge. He rounded a bend and caught sight of [member="Lady Kay"] starting to climb out of the pit and to the stands. Mac swore internally and sprinted down to the wall. He couldn't follow Kay up that wall. It had no holes, and even if it did, the crumbling rocks would not support his weight. His best bet was to use his ax to pull Kay down off the wall. If she did fall, then he would be right on top of her. As Mac got to the wall, he outstretched his arm with an ax in his hand, swinging at Kay's foot to pull her back down. Mac's height paired with his long axe and even longer arm gave him an incredible reach, but did Kay's head start give her enough time to climb above the grasp of his axe?

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay forgot about how big of a reach [member="Macoda Haberon"] had, both with and without his axe. What was worse was getting a firm foothold with every step that she climbed. There was maybe an inch in width for her to stand on with her toes. That slowed her climb.

Still, she could see the top in view, her hands just reaching the top. And then the axe came to hook on her foot, causing her to slid down a bit into his awaiting grip. Kay clung on with her fingertips while she tried to get another foothold.

But the rocks just crumbled beneath her feet. Gravity helped aid Mac as she fell further into his reach. So what did she do? She wiggled and squirmed as much as she could in order to try to not be gripped tightly.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

He didn't know what to do if [member="Lady Kay"] had managed to climb out of his reach. Luckily the wall that she was climbing had betrayed her, and an axe managed to hook around her foot. Mac took the axe and slammed it to the ground, causing Kay to tumble off the wall. However Mac hadn't won yet. Kay squirmed and wiggled around, preventing Mac from getting a firm hold on her. She wasn't giving up yet, and that simple fact revealed her progress.

She was slippery to hold on to but Mac had her pinned up against the wall. He came to his senses and realized that he didn't need to grab a hold of her. Instead, he tapped Kay's shoulder with the flat side of his axe, getting his point across. He looked down and smiled. Mac was breathing harder than he thought, Kay certainly had given him a run for his money, and she could've very well escaped had a few things gone her way. But here she was...

"Dead"

 

[Kay-Larr]

It was working. Her wriggling around was working! And then it stopped working alltogether. She was cornered and pinned up against the wall. Maybe if he was her height, she could've just pushed him away, but he wasn't. [member="Macoda Haberon"] not only towered over her, but his frame was much larger too.

Kay smirked as Mac smiled and pointed out that her life had ended in that round. "Yeah well...if only I had picked a better spot to climb out, then I would've made it. Still, I lasted longer than in an open space."

She could've done other things besides squirming, like punching or kicking him, but those were after thoughts now.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac outstretched an hand to help [member="Lady Kay"] off the ground. "Aye, you definitely could've escaped me if a few more things had gone your way. But I can't teach you how to be lucky." Mac smirked. The arena had proven to be much harder than the catacombs, he realized that he only really won by luck. But winning is winning.

He looked around the arena, taking in the scenery. Mac turned to Kay, "What was this arena used for?"

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay took his hand and got to her feet. She then let go and dusted herself off with her free hand after opening her water bottle and having a sip.

As [member="Macoda Haberon"] looked around, she was already going through this round in her mind, contemplating what she could have done differently to make it all work. Every choice gave an equal opportunity for a different outcome. It was mostly just a matter of time before she would be caught. Luckily blasters weren't being used. However ones that were set on stun could be used at a later practice.

Kay focused on Mac as he asked his question. "Competitions more than likely. It hasn't been used in such a long time. It would need a lot of fixing up if it was to be used again. But I like the privacy it gives me. I can imagine that plenty would be laughing at me if they saw us."

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac looked back at [member="Lady Kay"] with a smile. "Oh they would laugh alright. For some reason you keep on losing your footing." Mac held up his ax and brandished it teasingly. He then held the ax in his hand and took a moment to admire its beauty. He traced a thumb over the Epicanthic engravings on the blade of the ax. The leather wrappings around the phrik handle felt so familiar. Mac's axes were truly a part of him, and he would have no idea what he would do without them.

Suddenly, a question came to Mac. He diverted his attention from his baby back to Lady Kay. "Hey Kay? Do you have a lightsaber? I've never actually seen you with one. But don't all force users have one?" If she did have one, then maybe they could spar a little bit, although training with a lightsaber isn't exactly the level of incognito that Kay was probably looking for.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay gave [member="Macoda Haberon"] a look that just said 'Ha ha ha'. She then watched him as he studied his axe, admiring it even. Did she ask him about them earlier? She couldn't remember. At some point later she'll have to do so.

Mac then asked about her lightsaber. That had a bit complicated of an answer. "Technically I have two. One that I had before my abduction, which was taken by someone that Veiere says was a friend. And another that I made during that time. I just don't use it often, nor do I carry it with me all the time. It would give my secret away. But that's what I have people like you for. To watch over me. As to whether or not all Force users have one, I don't know..."

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

"Well, maybe you should start using it some. Something only for emergencies, you know?" Mac held up his ax. "My axes have saved my life more than I care to admit. It might be useful to have a lightsaber around, just in case." He holstered his ax and let his hands rest comfortably on the axes holstered by his sides. He looked back at [member="Lady Kay"]. The fact that she preferred to rely on Mac for protection rather than bringing her own lightsaber was an unintended compliment. That took a lot of trust and Mac recognized that.

He placed a hand on Kay's shoulder and grinned. "Aye, you can always count on me."

 

[Kay-Larr]

Something for emergencies. [member="Veiere Arenais"] had mentioned it a few times that she should carry hers with her. But doing so meant possibly revealing her secret to the Galaxy and she wasn't ready for that yet. Most especially in light of what had happened during her abduction. It made her quite uncomfortable. The only way that she could see herself carrying it would be if she were to somehow strap it to one of her legs and hiding it under her gown. That would take some getting used to. But even then, many of the meetings that she had gone to required that no weapons ve brought at all. So that posed a bit of a problem. "But you aren't a diplomat, Mac. Your way of life requires you to have weapons, it allows you to. Yet if I'm to gain the trust of other people and other governments, most of the time I can't be armed. But...I do keep my lightsaber in my office, in one of my desk drawers. So it's available for me when I conduct business in there."

Kay placed her hand on [member="Macoda Haberon"] 's as he reassured her about being able to count on him and smiled. She had plans for him that extended beyond his duties. "Thanks Mac. I appreciate it." She removed her hand and took another look around the arena. "We could probably practice more out here. Maybe even with my lightsaber. Though I'm not so sure if you'd want to use your axes for that..."