TSO Tournament: Round 2 (Darth Abyss vs. Darth Lykos)

[Darth Ophidia]

Fresia - Temple of Pain.

Spoiler

In the glory days of The One Sith, this humble place had been on the cutting edge of Sith Alchemy. Since then, it had been attacked, burned, looted and scavenged into a crumbling husk of its former glory. Where once fires burned bright there were cold ashes; where concoctions simmered, there were only toxic crusts. Here in the husk of glory, the apprentices of Death would do battle.

As she awaited their arrival, the Pale Assassin stood in front of the locked metal doors, now specked with rust. In her stillness, she looked as much as a stone sentinel as those perched upon every pillar and corner around them, and only when both stood before her would she lift her head to reveal her ember-eyes and speak in the cold rasp of her voice.

"These are the ruins of your origin; a monument to the folly of our past. Here you will do battle."

Her arms raised lashed out to either side, triggering a series of metallic creaks and roars as the doors unlocked and split open to reveal the darkness within. The dust of decades lost cascaded out and around her form as a bone-chilling chuckle escaped from between her painted lips.

"Show no mercy; do not hesitate. The law is success or death."

As the dust settled, her form was nowhere to be seen. No footprint remained in the dust nor signature in the dust. Had she ever been there, did she play a trick of optics? It did not matter, for the arena was open and the champions present.

Ready: Fight!

[member="Darth Lykos"] [member="Darth Abyss"]

Spoiler

The thread is open, do your thing. If you have any issues, questions, or concerns do open a PM with me. I will be here to help you resolve whatever comes up as well as judge the outcome of the duel.

 

[Darth Abyss]

Darth Abyss against [member="Darth Lykos"], his acolyte brother, his fellow member of the assassin council, the other lord that survived the training under [member="Darth Ophidia"]. It was a fight that had always lingered somewhere in the shadows, the challenge to determine once and for all who of the assassins was the greater one. The battlefield couldn't be more fitting, the abandoned ruins of an old temple, filled with corridors, dark corners and vantage points, all perfect to set ambushes, traps and anything else along that line. It would not simply be a battle of strength, but one of intelligence, of awareness and creativity. Both sith had their own set of skills and tricks hidden below their dark attires, and only the one that made the best use of them would leave this place victorious.

The robe of the Black assassin drifted slightly in the wind, as he stood face to face with his opponent, probably for the last time for this encounter. There was little time to plan out his first move, ay he expected Lykos to scatter into the shadows, exactly like he meant to do himself. It wasn't about opening a direct fight, but rather about who would be the one to run and who the one to hunt, at least for the begin of the fight. The white assassin was more talented at hiding and masking himself, and his Zabrak senses gave him a advantage at finding him even when cloaked by the force. So it would be the better move to start as the hunter, not the prey.

"May the greater of us survive this day, brother."

Abyss lifted his left, like he wanted to offer the Zabrak a handshake to seal their fate, a last sign of respect before they would spill blood. But there was nothing honorable about this move, as there was nothing honorable inside of Abyss. He was a man without grandstanding, without remorse and without any morals or rules that limited his actions. After his hand hoovered in the air for just a second, a small scattergun jumped into his left, pulled from a secret deposit in his left boot by the art of telekinesis.

Without delay he fired a shot, a projectile that would shatter on impact into a small storm of sharp metal pieces. He had very little expectations to actually land a hit, he knew that Lykos was quick both in body and mind, and the attack was merely meant to force him to enter into the temple.

 

[Xevek Nekonis]

Lykos followed Ophidia on soundless feet, moving just scant meters from who was now to be his foe. Darth Abyss was an ally in many ways - a fellow Sith Assassin, a fellow member of the Assassin Council and a Sith Lord that understood the benefits of acting behind the scenes at times - yet, more importantly in the current moment, within Lykos' mind, he was no longer any of these. It was as his Master had stated, the law for this fight was success or death, just as it was the law of nature and survival, a manner in which to weed out the weak and those unworthy of the burden of life and, so, the Zabrak now viewed the Black Assassin as another obstacle, another challenge, of which he was to overcome and surpass should he wish to continue surviving and ever present stride towards the elusive goal of perfection.

As the Rattataki vanished from his sense, Lykos paid the fact little attention as he stood opposite Abyss, mind jumping from thought to thought at a rapid pace as his lone amber eye glared at the fellow cloaked-Sith. The pair knew each other, through the fact that they had sparred and sharpened their skills against one another as well as worked along side the other as assassins. As such, while Lykos had the advantage of knowing that Abyss was someone who specialised partially in surprise 'gadgets' hidden across his body as well as partially in mentalism, Abyss had the advantage of knowing that Lykos was someone who, while capable of fighting one on one, much preferred to fade into the shadows he so admired and strike from there.

This simple fact, this simple balance of knowledge, would serve to alter the fate of the duel by eliminating the surprise that may have caught others. As such, Lykos was plotting his future actions even as he stared at Abyss, waiting for the signal, a twitch of movement, that would begin the start of this struggle to survive. To achieve a possibility of taking the Aspect of Famine by surprise, the White Assassin would have to begin the fight differently than how his instincts were screaming at him to do so.

As the arm came up for a handshake, empty words filling the stale air of the abandoned temple, a shadow of a fleeting smirk would pull at scarred lips. In this fight, they were White and Black, Conquest and Famine, and, as such, honour did not exist upon this battle field. As such, the contracting of muscles to lift the arm was the signal the Zabrak had been waiting for and the herald of his opening action.

Said action was not physical, instead, it occurred within the Force. Years prior, Lykos, before even bearing that name, had been known as the Sin of Sloth for his skill with Force Slow and, over the time since then, he had not let that particular ability weaken. He had evolved it to match its older siblings Force Affliction and Plague by making it serve as a poisonous seed that embedded itself within his foe's connection to the Force, influencing them less they distract themselves by fighting against it or pause to purge its efforts.

However, it was not in that manner that he currently used it. Instead, he turned it upon himself and reversed it at the same time. Instead of hindering the transportation by chemicals of electrical signals across his synapses, the Reverse Slow instead lessened the time taken, heightening the speed at which his body could move and mind could think; seemingly slowing everything around him while speeding himself up. Such effects were not without drawbacks though and unless Lykos wished to trigger a heart attack, he would not have long to use this effect. But, what time he did have would be put to use.

Just as Abyss' scattergun was being draw to the Black's hand, White blurred forwards from where the barrel was aimed, pushing through a world moving in slow motion as he ran towards Abyss' left side, cybernetic arm coming up to be aimed directly at the Human's throat, hidden blade snapping into place.


[member="Darth Abyss"] | [member="Darth Ophidia"]

Spoiler

Sorry for the delay and I hope that this is okay. I tried to explain everything so it wouldn't seem like it was being pulled out of nowhere. But, if there are any issues with my post, let me know and I'll be glad to edit.

 

[Darth Abyss]

To say that he had seen that one coming would be a bit of an overstatement for two reasons, but years of training and combat experience taught Abyss that even the least skilled and capable warrior could pull something that you couldn't anticipate. First of [member="Darth Lykos"] was many things, but most certainly not an unskilled opponent, so the black had known to be ready for literally anything. The second reason was that Abyss had not seen it, in a more physical sense. He had seen people use fairly quick thanks to the force, but whatever the Zabrak had done with the force that pumped through his body overshadow anything Abyss had been confronted with prior to this battle.

Only due to the tingling sensation of danger in the back of his head created by the force, he was able to pull his body to his left just a notch, the blade of Lykos leaving a painful, but overall harmless cut on the right side of his neck. The sheer surprise made Abyss left jump to the side, the shoot of his gun fading into the air somewhere far besides his opponent, while the small firearm was knocked out of his hand by the recoil. Yet his mind worked quick, and as always his own apparent weakness would be able to become an advantage if played out right.

Every movement was made deliberate, from his eyes that widened just for a second as blood began to run down from his neck, to the slight stumble backwards, just enough to look injured but not weak. He knew that Lykos knew about he fondness of trickery and misdirection, so there was little to no room for mistakes. His opponent would expect him to act exactly like this, so he had to add layers and layers of misdirection above his actual action, to the point were not even Lykos could predict the angle he choose for his next move.

Seemingly in an effort to catch his balance again, Abyss right pushed forward and from his sleeve the hilt of a saber jumped in his hand. So far so simple, probably the kind of attack that Lykos presumed Abyss to make. The purple blade jumped to live, in an diagonal upwards cut from his right side, but just a small bit to far away to truly hurt his opponent, right at the point where it would be believe that he simply misjudged the distance in his stumble. Would the Zabrak take a little step back, he would evade the blade completely, but even if not, it would only burn of the top layer of his attire.

A split second before the blade reached the level of Lykos head, Abyss fingers tipped on a small button on the hilt of his weapon. From the tip of the purple plasma blade a sonic shoot was fired, aimed directly at the Zabraks head. The shoot lacked the impact and strength of a real sonic weapon, but it was still capable of knocking an enemy out, or breaking a more fragile bone like that of a nose.

[member="Darth Ophidia"]

 

[Xevek Nekonis]

"Never see weakness in a beast you know to be strong as a simple weakness, child. No other sentient being may lay claim to the deserts as we Zabrak do, but do not make a fool of yourself by believing that this diminishes the intelligence of the Great Prey. Should you ever find yourself in a Hunt with them, should you ever find yourself needing or wanting to remove them, never stop, never cease and never hold back in your strikes. Attack and attack and attack again 'till they lay dead at your feat. Anything less, no matter how weak an appearance they may put on, will leave you dead in their stomachs. Press the advantage and never stop. But never forget, even in this situation, there is such a thing a too much focus."

The words his farther had uttered to him upon taking him to witness a Hunt of a Be'Akhoi (Superior Champion) repeated within Lykos' mind as he witnessed Abyss stumble back from his strike after the Black Assassin had managed to twist out of the way of his blade. Yes, those words were for a beast that prowled the deserts of Iridonia, but that did not mean that their intent could not be adapted and applied to the current situation, especially when Lykos knew how trickery his fellow Assassin could be.

A metallic scent continued to slowly dampen the air around the pair of combatants, still stood within the entrance hall of a temple that may well now be a tomb, crimson slowly staining the inside of a dark robe as Lykos immediately wheeled around to face Abyss once more before charging, gathering the Dark inside his throat as he did so in preparation for the next stage of his plan.

They were masters of deceit, the pair of them, and Lykos held no doubt in his mind that the stumble, whether purposeful or instinctive, that concealed some plan, some idea that the Aspect of Famine had concocted to seize back control over the flow of the fight, even if said fight had only just begun. Still, his father's lesson pushing him forth, the Zabrak pushed forwards as a purple blade of plasma burst from Abyss' palm and came charging through the air towards him.

It was only due to the effects of the Reverse Slow that he was able to recognise the fact that the strike, already one that was too Amina-damned predictable, would fall short even if the swing had only just begun. Could an instinctive tumble born through the desire to escape pain cause a panic-driven strike to fall short? Yes. Was all of those factors falling into place so perfectly when the foe Lykos was facing was a man who, through the nature of their occupation, held grace within his bones a extremely favourable coincidence, especially when trickery was the pair's life blood? Yes. Did Lykos believe it? No.

Pushing his body forwards, calling upon the Force to further empower his already empowered body, the White Assassin pushed past a blur as he appeared in front of Abyss. His left hand, his cybernetic hand, would clamp upon the arcing wrist, halting the movement of the lightsaber, as his right hand would be drive forwards in an open-palmed, Force-Push-empowered-at-the-final-moment-so-as-to-hit-with-a-multiplied-force strike to Abyss' chest while he finalised the next stage of his plan: the distraction.

However, in the end, he did not choose to consciously use said distraction, the choice being robbed from him. In his focus, he had ignored the halted lightsaber, arrogant in believing that no matter what trick or gadget Abyss was planning to use, the lightsaber was just a distraction. As such, even with the strike stopped, the sonic blast would still be fired even as the momentum of Lykos' body would continue to drive the palm thrust forwards and his cybernetic hand would remain clamped to Abyss' wrist.

With the lightsaber hilt not next to, or aimed at, his head, the effect was not as great as it could be, but a roar was still pulled from the Zabrak's throat as the sonic blast ruptured his left ear drum and caused a loud ringing to pound within one side of his head as his sensitive hearing took the brunt of the blast. With his focus on shaping the now expelled Dark that dripped from Lykos' voice broken, what was meant to be a roar imbued with Force Fear to see if he could cause Abyss to falter for but a moment - not so much from the fear but from breaking the effect of Force Fear - became a Force Bellow.


[member="Darth Abyss"] | [member="Darth Ophidia"]

Spoiler

Just wanted to point out that if it seems like a lot is happening, that's because, to Lykos, there is. What with the effect of 'Reversed Slow' making everything slow down by increasing his thinking and physical speed. But, like I said in my first post, this will have an effect on him - a heart attack - if he pushes himself too hard. For a reference, the next post will be his 'safe' limit while the post after will be his 'risky' limit. As in, if he ends it at the end of my next post, no debilitating effect. The post after and he will suffer some draw backs. Post after that? Heart problems. Does this work for you? If not, I'm fine with changing this.

 

[Darth Abyss]

His position was compromised, and he had little chance of breaking the zabraks grip around his wrist without another trick. Abyss was close to peak physical condition, but [member="Darth Lykos"] still easily had the edge in pure strength, as the black never properly learned to channel the force into his body to amplify his strength. In fact the only real force he could apply to his body was the suppression of pain as well as keeping his mind in place when other would fall unconscious. Not something that would serve him well in this kind of situation.

The roar of his opponent blasted through his ears, clearly amplified by the power of the dark side. The fear had no effect on Abyss mind, there was little to none that another could send at him that could influence his throughout. Some had minds that were fortresses, but his own was an all devouring void that simply absorbed the mental blast in the depths of his brain, where it became nothing than one of million little pieces lost in the dark.

Yet the sound itself broke his focus, which had been working on a plan to even out the field a bit. To his luck he had already found it, the second he noticed Lykos reaction to the missed sonic shoot. The Zabraks senses were a great advantage he had over the human Abyss, but they could also turn out to be a weakness if he played it right.

The thought process was broken once more when the Zabraks open palm was pushed against his chest, clearly. empowered by additional impact in form of the force. His former trick probably saved his rips to be shattered by the impact, but Abyss picked up on the sound of at least one giving partly in to the attack, while all air was pushed out of his lungs, leaving him gasping in a almost panicked attempt to draw oxygen back into his body.

Again the fingers of his right reached for a button on the hilt of his weapon, a bit below the one he pushed before. It was a failsafe build into the weapon for a last solution if he found no other way out. It was luck that it was a weapon perfectly tailored for a fight against a zabrak, but this was a moment where he would've used the weapon anyway to bring back a certain balance to the fight.

A high pitched, jarring sound was produced by the hilt of his blade, not unlike that produced by a sonic grenade. It was strong enough to stun himself for up to a minute, so he could barley imagine how it would feel for the far more sensitive ears of a zabrak. Abyss felt his legs go weak, and his balance becoming brittle as he was affected by his own weapon as well.

[member="Darth Ophidia"]

 

[Xevek Nekonis]

The satisfaction that Lykos felt at feeling the give within Abyss' chest when his palm strike landed was soon burnt into ash as another high pitched scream assaulted his senses, dulled slightly due to the fact that he had yet to recover his hearing in his left ear. However, even dulled, the piercing sound was enough to greatly affect the White Assassin, Abyss' trickery turning what was usually a boon and advantage into a disadvantage as the sense that often allowed him to track and pursue his prey was used against him.

Normally, Lykos fought on multiple levels at once, each move perfectly calculated so as to pry open a weak spot to be taken advantage of down the line or to take advantage of a previously created weakness. However, with the piercing sound assaulting his hearing, Lykos had no capacity to even consider following his prior practices. Advance thought quickly devolved into instinct born reactions. Careful consideration and planning regressed into what could be amounted to fight or flight.

In the seconds between his 'sentient' mind retreating and his 'animalistic' mind taking over and the the point at which the unending sound would result in his complete immobilisation from the jarring assault on his senses, a second roar would be ripped from the Zabrak's throat, a wave of pressure exploding from all around him, kicking up dust and stone from the floor as his cybernetic grip would release Abyss' arm.

Still reacting on the flight aspect of fight or flight, Lykos, his speed still enhanced through the Reverse Slow and empowered further still, would seemingly disappear from in front of the Black Assassin, his cloaked form vanishing down one of the hallways leading deeper into the temple, Presence within the Force flickering before being removed entirely.

Minuets later, Lykos would collapse against a wall, his focus returning now that he had escaped the sound. His left palm swinging out to slap against the surface. After a few seconds, he would set of again, stopping at the end of hallway and repeating the action of slapping the wall before once more setting off and repeating his actions, again, a bit further along. Where his cybernetic palm had touched the wall, the glowing Sith Rune Omifar, the Rune of observation, would be left, a sentinel on the look out just in case Abyss was able to follow the Zabrak.


[member="Darth Abyss"] | [member="Darth Ophidia"]
Sorry if this post is lacking in quality. I found it hard to write, for some reason.

 

[Darth Abyss]

When Abyss was able to stand again, slowly coming out of the shell shock that his own weapon had created his opponent was nowhere to be seen. Not much of a surprise, but still unfortunate. The White always had been better in becoming one with the shadows than the Black, who favored different tools than stealth alone. Hunting the zabrak was of little use, as even if he could find him there was little chance to catch him of guard. If anything, a hunt would turn into an ambush which would give [member="Darth Lykos"] an advantage.

No instead hunt he had to lure his adversary, draw him out of hiding in a battlefield of his choice. Picking his gun up from the ground and letting it disappear in his boot again, the sith lord made his venture inside the temple as well, his senses focused on even the slightest twist of reality that would reveal the doings of the dark side which Lykos used to hide himself.

While he preferred to engage his enemies in a medium distance, he had the mindset of a sharpshooter. Cold, calculating and patient, ready to wait his enemies next move out instead of making one himself. Right after entering Abyss picked the first corridor that crossed his path, far away from where the zabrak had gone. Tracking him would've been rather easy for Abyss, as he had master the art of psychometery to a degree where the old stones would even reveal the slightest whisper of an echo to him, the kind that every living being left.

There he simply dropped to the ground, his legs crossed in meditation. He made no effort to mask his aura or his image from the outside. After all he wanted his opponent to find him. Falling into a deep trance, a corruption version of the jedi technique of emptiness he allowed himself to get as close to the force as possible. Once he would return from his trance, he would hold a temporary advantage to his speed, strength and resilience, which he would use to face the Zabrak. The beauty was in the detail. The longer his opponent would wait to engage him, the more he would gain from his mediation.