Only a few days had past since the two men had investigated the Celestine. Talyson left to recover the Peregrine. Noah had blipped home only to come back when he received word from Remi with the details of what Ronin had told him. He traveled from the heart of Torchline to the beach early in the morning so that he could get a proper lay of the terrain.
The beach was fairly smooth without a lot of debris or other hindrances in the sand. Noah appreciated that — there was some kinship to the beach and the layout of the snowy tundra, even if they were on opposite sides of the heat spectrum.
Standing now in their designated sparring ring, Noah prepared for Talyson to take the first move, mind focused and centered. The men had sparred a few times before, but this tournament held different stakes. The swirl of his magic was close to the surface now, a silent pulse beneath his skin ready to be called on at any second.
Noah waits for Tal to come and make the first move!
He has only items from his profile that can fit in his pocket/be worn without hindrance (so no spear, quiver, cloak, or Sentinel’s Jacket). No companions.
Regional Score bonus: +3 in all shrine visits, drops, PQ+s, KQs, etc. (You must post this at the bottom of any post where a +3 should be included) the forsaken
Boreal, apex predator opportunist that she was, had abandoned Tal as soon as they'd arrived to go cruise the audience for friends, attention, and treats, leaving the courier to approach the ring alone. The courier had watched her go with a complicated expression of wounded indignance, his scowl pulling his brows together like a pair of gathering storm clouds.
Whether Noah liked it or not, Tal had come to think of his fellow Halovian as a combination of friend and mentor and it was daunting to face off with him at such a, well, public event. With spectators, no less! He'd really needed his companion's moral support, but as he scanned the crowd for her his pale eyes landed on Flora instead. He gave their hostess a rictus stage-fright grin she might remember from his last public appearance in Torchline before giving up on his dragon. Gathering his courage, he schlepped his ass over to the sparring ring where Noah waited for him.
"Hey, Noah," he acknowledged, rubbing the back of his neck and taking a deep breath. And then another one. And then a third--
Ah, fuck it.
Before he could start hyperventilating, he pulled his Goggles down over his eyes because safety first and then charged into the ring with a desperate yell to raise his courage. He stabbed his Nightmare-Honed Dagger towards Noah's right arm as soon as he was within thirty feet of his opponent, and continued to close the distance from there!
Tal has his Frostbite Cuff, See-Right Goggles, Rockhide Vest, Special Delivery Dagger (Honed by Nightmares), and his Ring of Mending.
Active this round:
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Special Delivery Dagger | A carefully crafted dagger veined with crimson markings, decorated with the foot of a blink hare. Upon making a stabbing motion in the air, the dagger may damage a target up to 30ft away from the user.
Type: Dark | Style: Offensive | Level: Basic
Honed by Nightmares | A curious silvery coating covers the Special Delivery Dagger. Causes extra physical damage at a Basic level.
Type: Grey | Style: Defensive | Level: Mastered
Rockhide Vest | An armoured vest flecked in black and white and lined with cool, fur-like material. This item blocks physical damage at Talyson's Mastered level. Requires a 2 post cool-down between uses.
Tal attack 1: misses
Tal HP: 500
Noah HP: 530
Noah turned to see the Courier when his ring pulsated with a gentle warmth, alerting him of the accepted's presence. He gave a curt nod towards Talyson, "Morning." and greeted him in return. "Ready?" But it seemed he was.
As Tal approached and lowered his goggles, Noah readied himself for the attacks to come. He lowered his center of gravity, ready to dodge or strike, waiting for Tal. It wasn't a long wait, as the younger Halovian came rushing towards him with a feral screech. Had it been other circumstances, Noah might have laughed -- no, Noah would have laughed. In this moment, however, he was too focused.
Glacier eyes flick to the dagger and Noah knew its damage potential. He also knew that the courier did not need to be as up close and personal to sink damage with the dagger, unlike normal weaponry. It didn't stop Noah from dodging to the side anyways, hoping to avoid it. Thankfully, he was just fast and agile enough on the sands. Sucking in a breath, Noah balanced himself on the sands again, as his spirit stag came charging towards Tal from behind the Messenger.
Noah dodges then sends his spirit stag to charge/attack Tal.
Magic: Spirit Stag | Can summon the spirit of a mighty stag; an echo of Noah's former shift. This will last for 1 post per thread and appears to be made of pure sunlight. Noah can direct the stag to charge at a target, dealing fire damage and causing disadvantage on their next roll.
Type: Light | Rank: Upgraded
Regional Score bonus: +3 in all shrine visits, drops, PQ+s, KQs, etc. (You must post this at the bottom of any post where a +3 should be included) the forsaken
Noah attack 1: misses
Tal HP: 500
Noah HP: 530
Alas, his pterodactyl yodel cry failed to intimidate his opponent, but that was fine. Tal was intimidated enough for both of them! In spite of his Frostbite Cuff he was already sweating as he felt the eyes of the crowd on him while he took a swing and a miss at the demigod across the sand from him. "Shitshitshit," he mumbled under his breath, seeing Noah standing tall and weaponless, and though that could have meant several things there was only one that he thought he could do anything about.
The courier threw himself forward into a roll, cushioned by the sand, and felt the warmth of something nearly singe the back of his neck before he popped up again and continued to close distance. Lacking any other magic, he was entirely reliant on his Dagger to do damage in a fight like this, so his second verse was the same as the first: he throw a long-distance stab at Noah's leg to try and slow down his dodging!
Tal rolls forward to avoid the stag and pops up to keep running! He throws another Dagger-stabbity at Noah, aiming for his leg this time!
Active this round:
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Special Delivery Dagger | A carefully crafted dagger veined with crimson markings, decorated with the foot of a blink hare. Upon making a stabbing motion in the air, the dagger may damage a target up to 30ft away from the user.
Type: Dark | Style: Offensive | Level: Basic
Honed by Nightmares | A curious silvery coating covers the Special Delivery Dagger. Causes extra physical damage at a Basic level.
Type: Grey | Style: Defensive | Level: Mastered
Rockhide Vest | An armoured vest flecked in black and white and lined with cool, fur-like material. This item blocks physical damage at Talyson's Mastered level. Requires a 2 post cool-down between uses.
Tal attack 2: hits
Tal HP: 500
Noah HP: 445/530
The stag, pure sunlight in a striking body, meets nothing but sea mist as Talyson dodges. With a silent bellow, the creature dissipates into brilliant starlight and fades as quickly as a blink. Noah knew that the courier was quick, but he was hoping his first attack would hit. He kept himself prepped and ready as Talyson rolled and popped, glacier eyes never leaving the spritely man.
The dagger was his choice of attack again, to which Noah had to give him some credit. Noah was larger and stronger than him, so to be in a close encounter grapple would not be the wisest choice for the courier. The demigod dodged, but did not manage to escape and evade the blade's ranged attack. Noah hissed in a breath as the blade sliced a clean cut in his loose pants, and added a crimson wound to the now exposed leg.
Unfortunately for one of them, Noah had ranged attacks, too. Thus the demigod ignited the bright, huge, celestial dome over them -- healing for him, and hopefully damage for Talyson.
Noah uses Divine Opposition.
Magic: Divine Opposition | Noah summons a celestial shield dome in a 60ft radius. Any allies within the shield receive Mastered Healing, and any enemies are damaged at an Mastered level. May be used 3x per thread with a two post cool down.
Type: Light | Rank: Mastered
Regional Score bonus: +3 in all shrine visits, drops, PQ+s, KQs, etc. (You must post this at the bottom of any post where a +3 should be included) the forsaken
Noah attack 2: hits
Tal HP: 443.5/500
Noah HP: 501.5/530
The brief sense of elation at scoring a hit was short lived as Noah activated the ability that Tal had been dreading the most after their stint working the Docks together. His quick footsteps stumbled as pain washed over him and he staggered down to one knee in the sand. But the void critters wouldn't wait for him to catch his breath, and neither would Noah.
At least the pain focused him completely into the fight, pushing his awareness of the spectators out of his thoughts for the moment as he gritted his teeth and regained his footing, launching himself forward again.
Because he was trying to close the distance between himself and Noah. And he wasn't above playing a little dirty while he was at it. "Vi! Help me teach your demi a lesson! Uh. Please?" Tal yelled out as a distraction, as if to channel.
But instead of putting his heart into it he tried to put his Dagger into it - 'it' being the place he'd already hit Noah once - aiming a close-range cut from just barely out of arm's reach of the bigger man.
Tal pretends to Channel but does not and instead stabs again while getting close to Noah!
Active this round:
Type: Grey | Style: Offensive | Level: Mastered
Special Delivery Dagger | A carefully crafted dagger veined with crimson markings, decorated with the foot of a blink hare. Upon making a stabbing motion in the air, the dagger may damage a target up to 30ft away from the user.
Type: Dark | Style: Offensive | Level: Basic
Honed by Nightmares | A curious silvery coating covers the Special Delivery Dagger. Causes extra physical damage at a Basic level.
Type: Grey | Style: Defensive | Level: Mastered
Rockhide Vest | An armoured vest flecked in black and white and lined with cool, fur-like material. This item blocks physical damage at Talyson's Mastered level. Requires a 2 post cool-down between uses.
Tal attack 3: hits
Tal HP: 443.5/500
Noah HP: 331.5/530
The prayer. The words. The tone. It all hit Noah like a ton of bricks. It was worse than the Delivery Dagger. It was worse than the bite of a void creature. For Talyson to use his god against him like he was some sort of pawn?
Noah ignited.
Literally.
His body erupted with celestial light as it swam around him, consuming the glacial color of his eyes and turning them bright white and hot as the burning sun itself. He dodged to the side, a lunge more than anything else. He felt his heart pumping and beating and slamming against his chest and it took every ounce of his self-control not to let out the bear's roar that pounded against his throat and demanded release.
It was in the rage that as Noah went to dodge, he found himself sinking in to the dagger's attack rather than away from it. Did he stumble over his own feet? Did he trip on the frayed, torn fabric from the previous attacks? Did he find a hole in the sand that grabbed at his already injured leg? Noah wasn't quite certain (though someone would probably tell him later what happened). All he could think about as he hissed, growled, groaned in the pain was how he wanted Talyson to eat the words he spoke and never use them against him again.
It manifested silently, invisible to the eye, but Noah could feel it. He could feel the surge of power and rage and might pour from his chest, his hands, his very being and outward -- searching, ready to decimate.
Noah is overcome with rage from Tal's fake prayer/channeling that it ignites his passive magic. He crit fails in the dodge but ignites his Atomic Roar towards Tal.
Magic: Blazing (Passive) | Eyes and body glow with bright, flowing celestial energy when experiencing heightened emotion.
Type: Light | Rank: Basic
Magic: Atomic Roar | By way of manipulating atoms, Noah creates an invisible blast of energy that damages those within a 60ft cone. Those effected have to beat a STR save or be pushed back 10ft.
Type: Light | Rank: Mastered
Regional Score bonus: +3 in all shrine visits, drops, PQ+s, KQs, etc. (You must post this at the bottom of any post where a +3 should be included) the forsaken
Noah attack 3: hits (Tal not moved)
Tal HP: 387/500
Noah HP: 331.5/530
Oh. Oh. Oh shit he'd fucked up he'd fucked up he'd really fucked up--
He hadn't known it was such a touchy subject; Noah had never told him the messy deets of it all and the courier hadn't pushed, but as soon as he saw the other man's eyes flare up he knew he'd put his foot in his mouth again and he was going to regret it.
Because karma? Karma hit like a fucking truckcarriage. It was all he could do to bring his arms up to protect his face as the heat rolled over him like a solid wave, but Tal gritted his teeth and dug his heels in, refusing to be budged.
Because he kinda needed to stay where he was because oh fuck he'd fucked things up proper again.
"Sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry!" he yelled, and even if it was too little too late he threw himself at Noah to try and wrap the other man in a bearhug and squeeze like a thunderjacket made of meat. "Good demi nice demi pleasecalmdown!"
Tal attempts to grab Noah into a bearhug of apology! (But activates his Ring of Mending to heal himself just in case)
Type: Light | Style: Other | Level: Mastered
Ring of Mending | A silver ring imprinted with gold, as if it has been kissed. Capable of delivering Mastered Healing to one target of the wearer's choosing.
Type: Grey | Style: Defensive | Level: Mastered
Rockhide Vest | An armoured vest flecked in black and white and lined with cool, fur-like material. This item blocks physical damage at Talyson's Mastered level. Requires a 2 post cool-down between uses.
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