Battle in the Savannah *open duel*

OoC: *choke* I haven't been very active with the BA lately, I hope it will change now. Be warned tho, I'm not a good fighter, and there's a risk I will...forget to post in long amounts of time. I'll try to post as often as possible, but at least be aware of the risk. Today's character is Kisasian, my lion. His profile can be found here. Thank you.

BiC:

Sunrise

Kisasian raised his head and stared into the sun without even blinking. The burning sphere was rising over the Savannah, painting it in red, yellow and orange. The whole world seemed to be on fire, a beautiful illusion that repeated itself every day. The large lion let out a low growl; it grew to an ear-throbbing roar, as he greeted the sun. For a second he expected his Pride to respond.
Then he realized he was alone. The furry creature let out a sigh and hid his face in his hands. Leaving his Pride and living on his own had seemed like such a good idea. Now he was beginning to regret it. On the other hand, living the calm life had a tendency to grow boring quickly.
He wanted adventures. Wake up everyday in a new place. Meet challenges and win.
That was what life was all about.

Movement

Somewhere behind him, something moved. Kisasian spun around, drew his sword from its sheath on his back and stared out into the open plain. The sun shone on behind him, without a care in the world. The grass cast strange shadows, making it hard for Kisasian to see what had caused the stirring.
Anything could be hiding out there.
“Show yourself!” He growled.

He was beginning to feel paranoid and not so little ridiculous, standing there with his sword unsheathed, shouting to shadows.
But the movement, there really was someone out there!
“Reveal yourself, or I’ll put the whole Savannah on fire!” Kisasian yelled threateningly.
An empty threat, but perhaps it would make his hidden opponent reveal himself.

OOC: Well, well. This is certainly a surprise. Glad to see you back in the fray, Lioness. Btw, Here's the bio.

IC: The sun had risen high in the air, Its golden rays of light cascading upon the wondrous Savannah below. An awe inspiring spectacle that would bewitch any eye fortunate enough to take in this glorious sight. Red, yellow and orange blended together in a unique balance and grace that can only be found within the wisdom of nature. A young deer stood silent for a moment as it gazed upon what could only be described as a painting of the gods. All of a sudden, It jerked to life as its keen hearing detected a loud and quite unusual voice only a few meters away from it. The graceful creature quickly dashed away, Its instinct kicking in upon seeing the source of the sound. What the creature saw was certainly a most unusual sight in the Savannah.

Bathed peacefully in the crimson lights, rested the figure of a young lad basking away under the shade of an oak tree so ancient that it had likely witnessed at least a quarter of the Savannah's history. As the light slowly seeped through the dense leaves, The lad features came to light.

A crop of hair bearing the colour of silver was slightly ruffled along his face hiding his eyes. A black sleeveless shirt was strecthed over the taut scope of his chest, The fabric giving way to the wall of corded muscle that rested underneath. As the figure shifted to one side, Two long sabers could be clearly seen, A clear indication that this was no ordinary traveller. The silver mane of hair slowly flew to the side as a slight breeze began to pick up granting an opportunity to see the lad's eyes. They were quite odd for they bore the same healthy bronze colour that adorned his handsome face. .... Bronze?!! What the?! They're supposed to be purple!! How is that possible?

Upon closer inspection, The rather comical reason behind that unnatural alteration of eye colour was revealed. What the light fell upon was not his eyes but rather his eyelids. By the gods, He's asleep!!

Yes, That was indeed true. The young warrior was most definitely asleep. Quite oblivious to the dangers of the Savannah ranging from hungry lions to carniverous hyenas, The young lad continued to slumber, His chest moving up and down in an even rythmatic beat. Another fine example to illustrate the lad's carefree and reckless nature. That was Rein, The last of the proud race of the Ayuvirs.

All too soon, The unnatural silence that fell upon the land ceased to be as a loud ear-splitting roar surged through the air with the impact of an explosion. His warrior instincts arising, Rein quickly lunged into the air, His hands flying to the hilts of his blades. His amethyst gaze peered around him cautiously in an attempt to identify the source of the inhuman roar, All signs of sleep now completely out of the lad's system.

Nothing. Rein's amethyst eyes could detect nothing out of the ordinary with the Savannah. Since his eyesight was unable to detect the source of the sound, The youthful Ayuvir had to resort to his sense of hearing. Straining his ears to the limit, Rein was finally able to pick up something which culd qualify as the source of the noise. Whatever it was, It was obviously quite large for its footsteps were heavy and quite easy to detect. However, It most certainly was no ordinary animal, For its footsteps were calm and organized. Slowly, The lad continued his approach towards the sound's source now visible to the lad's eyes.

The figure before was, as he had correctly determined earlier, Quite large. His frame reaching at least two and a half metres in height. Strength was obviously one of the figure's trademarks for his chest was filled to abundance with incredible muscles that the gilded breastplate he wore simply failed to conceal. A large sword was strapped tightly onto his back, One amongst many signs that the figure was a warrior, And an accomplished one at that. It was the face, however, that interested Rein the most. It appeared to be a strange mix between that of a lion and a man. Before the lad could further assess the being before him, His foot, in a moment of carelessness, landed on one of the many twigs that lined the crimson plains of the Savannah.

Instantly, The figure rose to his full height, His hands unsheathing the gigantic sword on his back with an incredible grace that seemed impossible considering his enormous size further illustrating the breadth of the man lion's skill.

"Reveal yourself, Or I'll put the whole Savannah on fire!" bellowed the warrior lion.

A sly grin split the lad's face as the titanic figure let out the threat. The lion human had little need for such a threat as the Ayuvir's inquistive nature would have been quite sufficient to draw him out. And with that, The lad stepped forward from the thick shadows that had concealed his form, The confident grin still firmly fastened on his face.

"Who are you? And why did you emerge so quickly? What does this land mean to you?"

"Well, If you want to meet me badly enough so as to make such a ridiculous threat, I could not possibly turn you down, now could I? I am Rein. An adventurer, if you will."

Laughter erupted from the lion's throat upon hearing that remark though his grip tightened slightly along the hilt of his blade.

"Really? Well then. I wish to challenge you to a battle. A little practice would do me well."

"No problem. But you might be getting a bit more than just a little practice."

"That remains to be seen, my young friend. Now then, Let us begin." And with that, The titanic clash began.

OoC: ^__^ the perfect guy to bring me back to the BA…with a definite defeat --;
Well, I haven’t battled you since RaB; perhaps I’m more skilled now. At least I’ll do my best.

BiC:

Kisasian smelled the air, to gain scent of the cub. For a cub it was, no questions asked. Short and scrawny, compared to the lion’s Pride members, and what’s with that silver hair? Kisasian felt sorry for its mother, surely she must’ve been very ashamed at the birth of this cub.
“Tell me, you wouldn’t happen to be an only child?” The golden furred lion asked. Rein’s nod answered a lot of Kisasian’s questions. One of his lionesses had once received only one cub, instead of the usual twins or triplets. The little creature was crippled from birth, one of its legs bent in the wrong direction, and the natural thing to do would be to kill it. But since it was the sole cub for the lioness, she had begged Kisasian to spare her young. The kind soul he was, the Pride leader had agreed on it. For naught, it would turn out. The cub was spoilt from the day he opened his eyes, and got used to have his every wish granted. He later on died when trying to outrun a rhino. Kisasian had spent weeks out by himself looking for a good rhino, and it was to prove an important point; Life on the savannah was harsh and only the strong survived. Not too surprisingly, none of the members in the Pride had missed the kid. Not even the mother. Kisasian chuckled and thought of another episode that had happened a few years after he gained his throne, involving a very playful lioness.

Sharpen up! Don’t loose yourself in memories!

The old shaman’s voice cracked like a whip in Kisasian’s mind. Shiru might’ve had passed away years ago, yet he had somehow come up with a way to keep contact with his pupil. Much to Kisasian’s annoyance, one might add.

“I wish you would stop doing that!” Kisasian growled into the corner of his head where the aged lion’s presence was lurking. “It was just getting interesting”

“As interesting as getting impaled by a sword?” was Shiru’s dry reply “Then by all means, don’t let me disturb”

“Oh, but look at him, Shiru. He’s a mere cub! I could beat him with my eyes closed!”

Shiru cocked an eyebrow, or at least gave Kisasian the feeling that he would do it, had he had eyebrows. Being a ghost inside someone’s head had its disadvantages from time to time.

“I think it’s you that don’t look. Can’t you see that the boy moves with a grace only found in skilled warriors? Do you think those swords he carries are toys? You challenged him, could you now please go on with it? And stay focused, you can think about your lionesses later.”

The large lion reddened and muttered something best left unheard. He looked down and met Rein’s gaze. The boy fired off another grin. Kisasian frowned; the kid had blue eyes. It just wasn’t natural. What an odd start to the day.

“Are you done yet?” Rein asked and his grin grew wider. It was a miracle his face didn’t split in two. A breeze picked up and the lad’s silver hair stirred. “You took so long thinking it through; you’re not regretting it, are you?”
The wind caught Kisasian’s mane and made ripples in his fur. His tail swung back and forth and the sun glistened in his sword. He put one hand behind his head and let out a short laughter.
“No regrets here, kiddo. Just got some tactical advice, so to speak. I’m ready when you are.”
Kisasian took a fighting stance, his sword held in front of him, the tip barely touching the ground, inviting Rein to make the first move.
He had a new play mate, a different game, and no need to rush. The day had only just begun.

OoC: [mutter] leaving me with the first move [/mutter]
… Well, if I made any mistakes with your character, just let me know so I can edit it

OOC: Nah, It's fine. You handled Rein flawlessly (as was expected), my friend. ^^
You definitely weren't kidding about your improvement. Wow, You've become much better since our last battle. I can't wait to see how this one will turn out.
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IC: The two warriors gazed at each other for several moments, Their eyes locked in a silent challenge. Then, as though he could wait no longer, Rein made his move.

The silver haired Ayuvir gripped his blades tightly as he dashed towards the gigantic lion. With the immaculate battle instincts life in the wilderness had given him, Kisasian immediately thrust his sword towards Rein, His form perfect and his aim deadly.

However, The youthful lad clearly had the advantage in speed. An aspect that was made all the more clear as, with an agility found in few individuals, Rein's body lunged forwards in a graceful somersault, His boot clad feet landing for an instant on the the side of Kisasian's blade causing it to shift downwards for a moment due to the extra weight.

Using the momentum he had gained from his running jump, The silver haired lad flipped over Kisasian impressive frame and, without wasting the slightest moment, His feet smashed into the the Lion's backside.

Though Rein was indeed the faster of the pair, Kisasian's strength and experience more than made up for it. Something which, to the lad's misfortune, he had overlooked. No sooner had Kisasian had recovered from the momentary surprise Rein's agile move had brought upon him, He immediately swung the Pride leader's sword towards his enemy and, this time, his aim struck true.

A loud explosion of sound erupted as Kisasian's sword collided with the Ayuvir's twin blades. Though using the swords to block had saved Rein from certain death, They certainly could not completely protect him from the incredible brunt of the blow as his body skidded backwards several feet before he finally managed to stop his body.

Experience is one of the mightiest weapons in a true warrior's arsenal as it enables him to sense any moment of weakness his opponent might face. To know when it is best to strike and when to defend. Some consider it to be a dormant part of a being's instincts that is only awakened through consistent trials and deadly battles. Others believe it to be a compilation of one's battle tactics and combat strategies combined with cool reasoning and lethal logic. Whatever it's origins may be, All agree that it is, without a doubt, an irreplacable aspect of a warrior's abilites and a treasure whose worth exceeds any value. A treasure that was certainly within the mighty lion's hold.

Seeing that his foe would require several valuable seconds to regain his balance once more, Kisasian lunged at him quickly before his foe had a chance to use his speed once more.

Rein's amethyst eyes flew wide open as they gazed upon the rapidly approaching figure of the man lion. With an incredible grace that was in stark contrast with his intimidating size, Kisasian had sent his sword weaving through the soft fabric of the air right towards the young Ayuvir.

The youth quickly jumped into the air as the blade flew inches below his boot clad feet. However, Kisasian had already anticipated such a maneouvre from his young foe and thus a countermeasure had been invoked for no sooner had Rein dodged the lethal blade than he felt a tremendous amount of pain surging through the right side of chest as Kisasian's free hand grazed it, His claws leaving several small streams of blood that showed through the dark fabric of the lad's shirt.

Rein clutched his wounded side in pain as the son of Ral’tahk rushed towards him once more, Preparing to deliver the final blow. This time, however, Rein was ready.

Steeling himself against the throbbing pain in his side, The silver haired youth dashed forwards, The Fragarach shooting straight for Kisasian's head. Surprise coursed through Kisasian as he gazed at the youthful warrior dashing towards him. He had never expected him to be able to move after taking a hit like that to his side. There might be more to this kid than he had originally thought.

Instinctively, The gigantic man lion raised his sword in the Fragarach's path before it was too late. As the two blades collide, Rein seized Kisasian's momentary distraction and, with every ounce of strength he could muster, brough his other sword, The Fafniel, smashing into the lion's left arm.

A blow of this power would have downed a grown bull with ease. Not Kisasian though. No, The Lion Human's power far exceeded that of the average fighter and, instead of having his arm cut off as would have been the case for most warriors, A slight gash found its way onto his skin sending a stream of blood along his elbow.

"Hmm. It would seem that you are stronger than the average cub after all. This could prove somewhat entertaining." Kisasian spoke as his hand flew to the gash on his elbow. His eyes began to roam over the youth, Assessing him in light of the recent bout.

"You can bet on it. This should be interesting to see how this thing will end." Came Rein's swift and, as usual, somewhat cocky reply.

"Don't kid yourself, cub. You might be strong for your size but you still have a long way to go before you could match the strength of a lion. This I will be glad to prove to you once and for all."

"I can hardly wait. Let's do it."

Rein clutched the hilts of his blades tightly, His eyes closed in a slight grimace as the cut at his side began to act up again. He ignored the pain, now reduced to a dull ache, as he readied himself for the titanic duel that is yet to come. A duel like none other that the wilderness of the Savannah had the fortune to witness. It goes on.

“I don’t get it, Shiru. The cub is strong, but his style doesn’t look like any Pride’s I ever seen. ”

Kisasian stood panting at the Savannah, gazing at his young opponent. A lion’s build doesn’t allow it for longer periods of fast movement, but the cub had shown some extraordinary swift moves. Even considering how scrawny Rein was, it was still a mystery how he could’ve learned such attacks.

“What makes you think he’s from a Pride? ”

“Well, he must be, right? He’s too violent to be a grass eater, and too smart to be a bird. And he certainly doesn’t smell like a hyena. ”

The lion sent out his thought and at the same time, took a leap at the silver haired young man. He bared his fangs, a growl emitting from his throat. The attack was sudden, but not unexpected. As Kisasian brought his sword up and let it travel in a horizontal swipe, Rein used his own blades to reflect the blow. The force made the cub stagger, but he remained upright.

“Do explain, Kisasian. Why do you take for granted that he is from the Savannah? ”

“Uhm…well…what else is there? ”

Shiru suddenly fell very quiet. Kisasian got the sensation that the old shaman was slapping his forehead and crying out in dismay. He took the time to move up to Rein, the boy was still recovering from the block, and give him a lighter punch between his shoulder blades causing him to fall forwards. He could’ve done more, but at the moment he was more interested in what Shiru had to say. Toying with the cub was just for fun.

“Have I neglected your training that much? There’s a whole world outside of the Savannah, with all kinds of creatures living there. This boy is just an example. I suggest you don’t kill him, you can always ask him a question or two after the battle ”

“Whatever you say. ”

“You should also think about the fact that the world outside the savannah is more humid. Perhaps you can use it against him, the sun is rising higher and it will become very warm today ”

The warrior lion noticed how his opponent now had taken to stare at him. Rein stood slightly hunched over, whether it was from pain or fatigue, he didn’t know. In any case, the boy hadn’t attacked. Kisasian had left himself wide open while talking to the Shaman, why hadn’t Rein made a move? . Perhaps, if the battle ended without death, he would be able to get to know this strange being from the outside.

“Ready for another round?” This time it was Kisasian that let a smile play on his lips, even though it might’ve looked more like blood thirsty grin in the lion’s face. He juggled the huge blade he wielded between his fur clad paws. Rein nodded, his eyes beaming with the spirit of battle that shines in all warriors eyes.

OoC: that wasn’t anything to cheer for. I'm having what one usually calls, a block.Well, as you might know, I’m on a little break from ZU. Sorry for the cwappy reply, I promise I’ll try and make the next one better

"Weird. What could he possibly be thinking about that's so important that he would leave himself wide open like that?"

The silver haired warrior thought as his amethyst eyes traveled the breadth of his foe in silent assessment. The lion's mane was quite visibly ruffled, A testament of the intensity of this titanic clash. There were slight traces of blood on his fur and his chest moved in a rapid motion as the lion panted from the effort.

But aside from that slight movement, Kisasian was completely silent, so absorbed in his thoughts that time and space ceased to exist as far as the mighty lion was concerned.

Rein was not much better off, His shoulders were hunched slightly, A clear sign of exhaustion. His short silver hair was now unkempt, A slight fountain of blood flowing from the gash at his side. The only thing that was still as it was before the battle was the excited glow in his amethyst eyes. They seemed to grow livelier by the minute as Kisasian continued exceeding Rein's expectations. Now, they were slightly tightened as the young lad resumed his efforts to contemplate his foe's unnatural stillness.

They were, however, thwarted once again as the lion seemed to snap out of his thoughts. Kisasian rose to his full, and extremely intimidating, height and shook his head slightly in order to regain his focus once more.

"Ready for another round?" Kisasian asked the lad, His voice taunting, sarcastic and yet strangely curious to see how far this boy from the land beyond the Savannah will be able to go, how much could he bear. The lion's thirst for adventure and his desire to uncover the unknown rose to incredible heights at his mentor's words. His dark crimson eyes burnt with an intensity and curiosity that nearly rivaled that of the fires of hell.

The intensity in the lion's nearly threw Rein off balance. His amethyst purple gaze clashed with Kiasian's crimson red for an infinitesimal moment as the lad's head moved in a slight nod. His youthful recklessness was intrigued by the lion's awesome strength. Just how strong was this incredible fighter? Well, only one way to find out, Rein thought wryly as his grip on his blades tightened in preparation for the coming bout. The lad didn't have to wait long for no sooner had he seen Rein's tightened grasp on his blades than Kisasian lunged forward, His massive sword outstretched menacingly.

Clang

The sound echoed loudly across the wild plains as blade met blade in a fiery challenge. Kiasian's gigantic sword had weaved its way effortlessly through the thin fabric of the air as it descended upon the silver haired lad once more. Rein's speed had managed to save him yet again as his twin blades barred the path of the steel titan sending off an array of bluish sparks into the air. The two warriors were locked in equilibrium, Neither able to best the others. Their eyes, completely oblivious of the weariness that began to find its way through the bodies of the two champions, were locked for a moment. Neither of them spoke and yet the challenge was more pronounced than ever as each of them continued to peer into the other's eyes, trying to uncover the true depths of the foe's power. With a growl of impatience, Kisasian broke the silent connection and raised his blade into the air before descending upon the youthful Ayuvir in a fierce blow.

Kisasian's blow, though quite powerful, was anticipated and as such, Rein was able to react accordingly. The lad knew full well that, in his state of exhaustion, He would certainly be unable to block an attack of this magnitude. The youthful Ayuvir lunged to the side as the air behind him parted before the overpowering force of Kisasian's blow.

Though he had reacted perfectly, Rein was still unable to completely dodge the blow, His exhaustion slowing him down just enough for the blade to have grazed his left arm. With a silent grimace of pain, the young Ayuvir quickly rolled onto the grassy plains as the Lion human's blade lunged towards him once more.

Kisasian crimson eyes widened in surprise upon seeing the lad's next, almost surreal, move. Instead of stepping out of the blade's path like most would have done, Rein dashed towards it, His blades sheathed and his chest spread wide.

"The cub must be insane! What could he possibly hope to gain by running straight into the blade's path like this, Shiru?"

"Don't drop your guard, Kisasian. I sense some purpose behind the boy's illogical move." Came Shiru's reply, His voice laden with cautiousness and worry.

"A plan?! What sort of plan would involve running at the tip of a blade? No, Shiru, I really don't think...." Kisasian's silent conversation with his mentor was brought to an abrupt halt as the youthful Ayuvir suddenly revealed the true purpose behind his bizarre tactic.

"What the..?!!" The startled cry escaped the mighty lion's throat as the silver haired lad suddenly lunged downwards, His body flying through the wide groove between Kisasian's firm legs. Instantly upon making his way to Kisasian back, Rein's body shot upwards as his hands quickly withdrew his blades from their sheathes and, with a dazzling display of co-ordination, The twins crashed into Kisasian's back with a painful thud.

A shocked roar flew out of the man lion's mouth as pain surged through his backside with incredible force. He staggered forwards several paces as he tried to stifle the throbbing ache. Rein's blow was an excellent one and, had it been a lesser warrior who took the brunt of the attack than Kisasian, then he surely would have killed his foe or, at the very least, paralyzed him.

Kisasian proved his true worth as warrior yet again as, despite the moderate stream of blood flowing along his back, He stood upwards, albeit a bit hunched, and held his opponent's gaze in an angered rage.

The two warriors stared at one another, Their eyes exchanging a heated conversation far more intense than anything words could convey. The exhaustion and fatigue that has made its way through their bodies were momentarily shunned to the side as each of this incredible duo readied himself for the coming bout of this climatic clash. Who would prove himself as the better fighter? Who would be able to best the other in this incredible show of skill, strength and speed. Only time will tell as the battle wears on.