Closed [Kendoka Sasaran] Dance of Daggers (Ayatah)

[Duron]

Time Stamp: 13th of Summer, 515AV
Location: Kendoka Sasaran
Who: Ayatah, Duron

Feeling a sense of excitement as Duron entered the Kendoka Sasaran. The Cerulean couldn't help himself from giving a normal akalak a goofy grin as he walked up the stairs to the school. He could tell by the confused look on the normal akalak's face that he was surprised with his presence at the school since normally Cerulean train at the the Takula Outpost with the rest of their peers. The Cerulean just ignored him as he took off his boots and socks and walked into the school. Putting his boots on the shoe shelf, Duron walked to one of the open pegs, took off his wide brimmed hat and greenish yellow vest, and placed them on the peg. Walking to the edge of the polished floor, Duron waited for the grandmaster to acknowledge him before he walked out onto the floor to train. When the master saw him, Duron gave him a slight bow and walked out onto the floor. Today was a going to be a good day for him because he hadn't felt any stirring of his annoying light brother Aferan, so he could focus on his lakan training without that weakling chiming in and interrupting his concentration.

Duron wasn't sure if he was going to spar anyone today because he needed to work on his strikes today. Besides, he would be watched constantly by the instructors to make sure that he didn't do anything unsavory to his opponent. Walking to the far end of the school, Duron decided to do a quick workout before he decided to work with his lakan. The reject found a open spot, and he started his workout with a exercise to warm up his muscles. The tattooed akalak started to run in place. For three minutes, he started his run with a slow small upward steps, so he didn't move forward or backwards. For the first five minutes, the stationary job allowed him to get his blood pumping. As he ran in place, he could feel the sweat trickle down his chest and back. After the three minutes were done. He started up his stationary run, but this time, he doubled the pace of the jog to a run. After a chime, he could feel his leg muscles start to burn as he lifted his feet to his knees level, but the second chime, he could start to feel his legs muscles were starting to scream out in pain. Exhaustion started to set in by the end of second chime so he stopped running and let his legs rest for another chime or two. Duron could tell he wouldn't be able to continue running at those speeds, so when he caught his breath, the akalak did another slow jog for the next two chimes till he was done with the exercise.

Getting down on his hands and knees, the cerulean straighten out his knees, so the legs were off the ground and started to slowly bend his arms outwards till he his face was a inch off the ground. Slowly pushing up his arms, the akalak could feel the muscles in his forearms, biceps, and triceps start to burn slightly, so he repeated the pushup for fifteen more reps. The first five weren't to bad since he was still full of energy and his muscles weren't starting to fatigue, but by the last five reps, he was struggling to get his body up off the ground. When was finished with his pushups, he got on his back, put his hands behind his head, and lifted his knees. Pull his head to the tip of his knee, he held it in this position for a about five ticks than he went back to his original position. Duron repeated the exercise forty nine times till the muscles in his abdomen were cramping and burning all at the same time. When the reject was finished with his crunches, he stood up and looked around the school. To his right, two akalak were sparing with wooden long swords and shields. The spar was intense since both warriors were equally matched, so most of the time, their wooden swords hit the shield or were parried away with the sword. It was fun to watch, and Duron secretly cheered on the smaller akalak. Eventually, the smaller akalak disarmed the larger akalak and the spar was over. The excitement of battle started to make his heart to pound with anticapation, but he needed to stretch out his muscles before he started to train with his lakan, so he bent over and reached down to touch his toes.

[Ayatah]

There was no doubting Ayatah's heritage today. She was five foot seven of pure Myrian: dark hair tied up and away from her face, leather shorts and a cropped top that made it possible to hunt in the intense heat of the jungle. Her body, lithe and toned, carried various tattoos and marks. The most noticeable of these were three faded scars that were approximately five inches long, slashing right across her stomach. The scars were partially covered by a black tattoo of a dagger that swirled around her navel, though it was still obvious that whatever creature had gifted Ayatah with this injury had been very big, very dangerous.

With a fixed jaw and determined look about her, Aya travelled quickly through the streets of Riverfall. Her head was held high, her back straight. The woman's entire demeanour implied a strong self-confidence. And thankfully for once, her mind-set matched her body.

The Myrian entered the Kendoka Sasaran eagerly, her very being brimming with enthusiasm and energy for training. Her smirk widened at the clattering sound of wood-on-wood; good, she would not be training alone today. Armed with a new positive outlook on life as well as the desire to flex her Myrian muscles, Ayatah joined her peers in the training room, pausing briefly to only drink in her surroundings. There were a couple of sparring pairs on the main floor already, but thankfully Aya spotted another blue-skinned male stretching and jogging to the side of the room. Hopefully, he would accept a female as a sparring partner. If not, Aya was all too keen to beat it into him.

But she needed to warm up first. Choosing a quiet corner of the room, Aya took herself off and began to stretch. She bent forwards, touching her toes with her fingertips and feeling the warmth of the pull on her muscles. Next, she crouched down and, supporting herself by placing one hand on the floor, stretched out her legs one at a time. Her joints clicked appreciatively and the Myrian allowed a small grin to pull at her lips. Next she stretched her arms, reaching them both forwards and then across her body.

She was feeling more limber now, and even more enthusiastic about the challenge ahead. But she would not let herself train without the proper preparation. So she closed her eyes, trying her best to ignore the grunts and clatters coming from the training pairs. Ayatah inhaled deeply, held the breath, and then exhaled with a contraction of her abdominal muscles. She repeated this four times, and on the final breath, bought her arms up from her side to hold them out in front of her. With a small jump, Aya kicked off with both legs, diving downwards and pushing herself up with both hands into a forwards roll. The dive roll was clumsy, and had she not been next to the wall, Ayatah would have tumbled down into an embarrassing heap. But thankfully, she just about managed to pull it off.

Not wanting to risk potential embarrassment again, she stood up straight and scanned the room yet again in search of a partner. The blue male from before was stretching, which the Myrian presumed was the conclusion of his warm-up. As she began to walk towards him, she finally noticed the tattoos on his face.

Though she had not seen such tattoos on a non-Myrian before, with a small shrug Aya assumed that were simply decorative. After all, her maternal people were commonly heavily tattooed, and if anything she regarded the marks as a sign to be respected. Nevertheless, as she approached the Akalak, she found herself feeling equal parts intimidated and intrigued. They were a fascinating people on the whole, and one that sported unique-looking tattoos simply captivated her attention even more.

Plus, she was a hot-blooded woman: a well-built male was something she would always appreciate, regardless of tattoos or not.

"Need a partner?" She proffered with a coquettish smirk, indicating briefly to the training floor behind her.

[Duron]

As Duron bent down to touch the tip of his cyan toes with the tip of his finger, he glanced over to see a attractive woman with long brown hair and tan skin stretching. Duron knew that he shouldn't be watching her, but his light brother Aferan seemed to taken a interest in the woman's body. The dark brother, Duron, had a small interest in the opposite sex, but he knew from a early age that any romantic relationship with a female would end badly for him since he was Cerulean. Lust was fine, but in the end love and romance would just end in heartache for him. It was part of the reason that he distanced himself from the opposite sex. He just wished Aferan would understand it, but he doubt it since Aferan was a weakling. Turning his attention away from the woman, Duron held this position for a about thirty ticks. Sitting on the ground, Duron stretched out his legs and bent over his left leg and reached out to the top of the knee. He wish he was about as flexible as some of his Cerulean brothers, but he had to make due with what he could do now. Eventually, he would be able to touch his toes. Holding this position of thirty ticks, Duron reached over his right leg and tried to touch his toes of his foot, but he was only able to reach his knees. Unfortunately, the rejects eyes fell on the human woman who now closed her eyes in preparation for something. Kicking himself for staring again, Duron curiosity started to set in as he continued watching her to see her next move.

Still doing his stretch, Duron watched as the woman jumped up, dived forward, and into a forward roll. The dark brother was to fascinating by the acrobatic maneuver to realize her mistakes. He was curious if she would be willing to part with her knowledge of acrobatics to a complete stranger. Suddenly, he heard Aferan's voice in his head, I know you don't care about my opinion, but you should talk to her. Our brother's companionship can only go so far...

Slowly Duron stood up and the expression on his face darken at the emergence of his brother's voice. How dare he tell him what to do! In his head, the reject spat back, I never asked for your opinion, Aferan! I plan on talking to her to see if she can teach me that maneuver, but I don't need companionship, and you are the reason why I call them brothers!

Stretching out his arms to each wall, Duron green eyes seem to be staring into a unseen void as he spoke to his brother. The reject wished that he could dispose of him once and for all, but he knew it was impossible. This conflict between them will go on till their body is rotting in the ground. How cruel twist of fate that he will have to deal with this torment for the rest of his life. Duron could feel the muscles in his shoulders and inner arms start to burn. Aferan seemed to not want to drop the argument, Yes it might be, but you need to forgive me someday, Duron. Maneuvers? Pssh, you are interested in more than maneuvers!

Shut up...

Crossing his arms over his chest, Aferan seemed to be enjoying the upper hand, She does have a pretty lips! Doesn't she, Duron?

Shut up! Shut up!

Duron could just hear the laughter from his light brother was his only response to his angry response, so he did his best to control his anger and said mentally with no emotion, I care little for trivial things like pretty lip on a woman. If she can give me the knowledge that I want than I will be happy man.

Duron held this position as he could feel the muscles in his in his back and forearms start to burn, but the Aferan's giggling in his head was starting to get annoying, and his light brother said with a chuckle, You are such a liar. Fine become a acrobat, but you need to admit that I am right. I know you, bother.

Duron realized the tanned skinned human woman was standing in front of him, and he was slightly embarrassed that he didn't notice her approach him. Petching Aferan for making me look like fool! Blinking for a moment, Duron turned his attention the woman when she asked if he needed a partner. He figured that she wanted a sparring partner; however, he wasn't daft enough to not notice the playful smile on her lips, so he said in common with a small smile, “I would be a fool to decline your offer; however, you need to be gentle with me. I tend to bruise easily. By the way, my name is Duron...” Finishing his stretching, Duron watched her next move, but he couldn't take his eyes off her face. Inwardly, he kicked himself when he realized that he cared more about her lips than her knowledge of acrobatics. Petching Aferan was right.

[Ayatah]

Closer inspection of the Akalak aroused Ayatah's curiosity further. Beyond the tattoos on his face, he looked the same as any other Riverfall native, yet there was clearly something... different. His response to her invitation was a little slow, as if the blue male had been too distracted by something else to even notice her approach.

But respond he did, with a smile and an acceptance to her offer of partnership. The Myrian smirked, allowing herself to laugh airily. "Oh, don't worry. I'll be gentle." She teased, an eyebrow quirking playfully as she spoke.

A season ago, Ayatah would never have entertained to act so coquettishly around a man. She had no interest in the opposite sex beyond her adopted son, Kuame. The idea of bringing a third party into their happy little family was impossible, out of the question. She had had an intense love once, many moons ago. When that had drifted to an absent end, she had simply assumed that the world of love, sex and romance was cut off from her now. She'd had her fill, and though she did partially miss the close companionship of a lover, all other aspects seemed unimportant. And when Kuame came into her life, Aya decided that he was the only man she needed.

Until they moved to Riverfall. The city was full of strong, warrior men: it was impossible to not admire their physique. To start with, Aya was in denial about her attraction to them: I admire them for their strong bodies, their obvious dedication to training. But eventually, after a few sparse interactions with the Akalak that left Aya giggling like a schoolgirl, she realised slowly that -- yes. She was still extremely sexually attracted to men.

Following this realisation, it became quite evident that Ayatah was not as closed off to romance and sex as she had initially thought. And the added presence of Kuame threw in an unexpected angle to these newly rediscovered desires: she wanted him to have a father figure. Men were secondary citizens to women in Taloba, but their roles in society were still appreciated. They were still beloved fathers, brothers and uncles. Aya had expected, having grown up in this matriarchal society, that the idea of a father for Kuame would not even enter her mind. But again, the city of Riverfall ruined that. The Akalak seemed to be dedicated fathers, valuing their sons over and above what Aya had expected.

But the desire to find Kuame a father figure would wait. It was no something that could be rushed, for the benefit of the young boy in question. She would not introduce her son to a string of potential lovers before snatching them away. Kuame had already lost too much. But when it came to attractive men...

Again Aya;s dark eyes trailed down the Akalak's muscular form, raising back up to land on his tattooed face. Yes, there was something different about this man, but Ayatah liked it. Those tattoos made him look dark, questionable, Myrian.

"I'm Ayatah. Ayatah of the Scattered Bones." The Myrian said, her voice heavily lilted with the Jungle accent. "It's nice to meet you, Duron." With the introductions and formalities over, the half Eypharian began to move in the direction of the wooden training weapons. Again she flashed him a smirk and said, "So, have you ever had a Myrian for a partner before?"

[Duron]

Unlike most akalak who tend to be stoic, Duron had zero need for the emotional discipline his race was know for, so the delicate laugh from the human woman brought a smile to his face. He was glad that she had a sense of humor, and the woman would even laugh at his bad jokes. Surprisingly, his brother Aferan stayed silent as he interacted with the woman. When the woman introduced herself as Ayatah of the Scattered Bones, Duron tilt his head slightly unsure of what to think of the strange name, but when she mentioned that she was myrian, the reject's curiosity about her started to peak more. He heard of rumors of the cannibals of the Falyndar jungles. He heard rumors the whole race was lead by strong warrior women who were known for their ferocity. Duron knew from a experience that rumors just told partial stories of situations, so it was intriguing to meet a myrian warrior in the flesh and to learn how to fight one if he ever encountered a hostile one in the field was another plus. Duron repeated her name in Tukant, “Ayatah of the Scattered Bones...” Duron followed her to the wooden weapon stand and looked for a similar wooden lakan similar to his own weapon. Looking over at the myrian, Duron shook his head and said in common, “No. I heard only rumors of your people, but it will be a treat for me to see how a myrian warrior fights in the flesh. Especially a warrior woman as graceful as yourself. Besides, it gets boring sparring with only my Cerulean brethren.”

Duron didn't want to mention to her that he intently watched her acrobatic display because he didn't want her to think that he came to sararan just to leer at woman as they trained. As he looked for his weapon, Duron inwardly groaned when he realized that he mentioned his standing in the Cerulean Cult. He figured the woman would find out about the stigma of his dark brothers if she stayed in the city long enough, but even if it was accident that he told her about his dark association with the cult. He was happy that he was honest with her. He doubt it would end well for him if he lied to a myrian warrior woman. When he found his wooden lakan replica, Duron said to her with another smile, “As I said, it is a treat to see how a myrian fights because I am sort of a student of war too. Like the Kuvan my order protects to the city too, but we are used for more... delicate situations less suitable for the honorable kuvan, so learning how to fight different opponents from different cultures heightens my chances of survival in battle. I am sure you can understand, Ayatah.”

Taking only one of the wooden lakan replicas, Duron flipped the large dagger in his right hand to test the weight of the weapon. It was similar to the weight of his own lakan. The reject turned his back to the myrian woman and thrust the point of the dagger at the neck of invisible opponent, and his free hand came up to protect his face. Duron slowly pulled the dagger out of the invisible opponent's neck and changed the grip on the stained wooden handle, so the dagger blade was coming out of the bottom of his fist and the sharp side was forward facing. It was a slow and awkward switching of his grip om the dagger, but he figured with more experience. Switching his grip will come quicker to him in time. When he was ready for his second strike, the warrior put his back leg behind his forward leg. As he turned to strike at the opponent behind him, he stepped out around with his forward and slashed towards the neck off the second opponent, and his free hand was still up protecting his face. The slash towards the second invisible opponent was a bit wobbly as it came around and across the neck of the opponent Also he almost lost his balance when he spun around to face the second opponent. In a real combat situation, it would mean certain death for him. When Duron was finished with his set of moves, he put his hand over the top of his fist and the pommel of the dagger. He bowed to his imaginary opponent out of respect for the battle and them than he turned to Ayatah and said with a wink, “Regardless of knowledge gained by sparring you, you are much prettier than my Cerulean brothers, so I see only advantages to partnering with you...” Duron wasn't skilled at a flirting, but he wasn't going to pass up the opportunity either. He just hoped that he wasn't to aggressive for her liking.

[Ayatah]

The Akalak said something Aya did not recognise: Cerulean. Her brows knotted together minutely when he first mentioned the term, but the Myrian said nothing. There was much of Akalak society that she still needed to learn about, so it was hardly surprising that an individual as seemingly different as Duron would talk about something equally odd. She brushed her curiosity aside. "I hope I live up to your expectations, then."

A student of war...

It was one of the politest terms Aya had heard to describe her maternal people. Usually it was barbarian, savage, beast. But student of war implied dedication and a certain level of respectability. It gave the Myrian the credit that, in Aya's opinion, they deserved for their militia. "Training is crucial to prepare for a battle," she said, leaning forward to search the collection of training weapons for two double-bladed daggers, "but the best experience will always be the real battles. What sort of... delicate situations do you refer to?" Though she had heard of the Akalak guards and security of Riverfall, Ayatah was unaware of any other division. She suspected it was quite different to what she had done as a Myrian warrior. "Much of what we do in Taloba is against the Dhani of Zinrah. There is no way to prepare to battle with a snake person, especially in their--" She stumbled over her words slightly. She was going to say 'in their mutant form', but that term she had decided to leave in the jungle for fear of being chastised for it outside Taloba. "--combined form." She said eventually, frowning at her own slip of the tongue.

Having finally found two double-bladed daggers, Ayatah stepped away from the weapon box and began to make her way to the training floor. It was relatively empty, with only two other pairs clattering about the matted area. She watched Duron practise for a tick or so, before realising that she really ought to the same. Standing an angle against a non-existent foe, Ayatah punched out the dagger in her right hand, gripping the blade in a reverse hold. Her left hand, by comparison, stroked the air with the tip of the dagger blade. It was quite evident that her dominant hand was her right, and by comparison her left hand was slow and clumsy.

Her grace and dexterity was not aided by the Akalak's sudden compliment. Ayatah smiled and allowed herself to bask in that warm confidence of being found attractive by someone. It had been quite a while since someone had spoken so bluntly to her, and the Myrian appreciated it. "That's very kind, thank you." her words were polite and formal, though Aya's tone was more dangerous and predatory. She slid herself close to the blue male, not too close as to be obvious to the others training around them, but she hoped Duron would take note of her sudden closeness, the way she very almost touched him, but seemed to hold herself back. "But compliments won't win you this battle."

[Duron]

After his bow to his imaginary opponent, Duron turned his attention back to the myrian woman. When Ayatah asked about the delicate situations the Cerulean Cult was involved in, Duron wondered if he reveal to much about his dark affiliations, However, he had a theory that to much mystery spurred mistrust between two people, so the tattooed akalak decided to answer her question, “The Cerulean deal with situations that most honorable akalak wouldn't deal with because they don't want to tarnish their honor. The best way to describe us would be the shadow guardians of Riverfall.” Deciding to be funny, the reject said with a goofy grin and a wink, “I am sorry Ayatah, but now you know my secret, so I don't think that I can allow you leave here alive...” He figured the myrian woman would realize that he was making a bad joke, but he should come up with a excuse quickly if she decided to take offense to it. Duron did have a bad habit of taking his joking to far, and people couldn't tell if he was serious half the time. Cerulean's had very few friends or acquaintances, so Ayatah was a unique person to keep talking to him. However, she could just be ignorant of the man that she was dealing with at the moment. Duron was dangerous man, but Ayatah was equally dangerous woman, so he felt somewhat comfortable realizing this fact.

When she started to talk about the Dhani, the cerulean just listened to her in silence. Duron didn't realize the snake people could change forms. Most of the Dhani in the city stayed in there humanoid form and didn't cause to much trouble for the akalak, so he hadn't had much confrontation with them. The akalak didn't realize the myrian army was used to suppress a nest of Dhani. Were the Dhani in Falyndar that dangerous? What were their other combined forms? These questions about the Dhani would have to be questions for another time because Ayatah seemed uncomfortable bringing those memories back to the surface. Duron watched the warrior woman practice with her double bladed daggers in each hand. The myrian seemed comfortable in her movements and attacks, and he was starting to wonder if his skills with his lakan were going to meet her standards. He was a lot more proficient with a spear, but they will dance with daggers today.

After his compliment about her physical appearance, Duron was taken back by the closeness of the jungle woman. Normally, he wouldn't allow someone this close to him. Touching him wasn't allow unless he got to know them better. Akalak was sure that the woman was doing this on purpose. Looking down at the woman, the cerulean could see the woman in all her spender, and he wasn't just appreciating her lips at the moment. However, the most alluring attribute if the woman was her smell. He couldn't put a finger on it, but he seemed to want to be closer to her, but he doubt that he could without physically touching her. When she spoke, it almost sounded like a challenge to fight or something else, so the akalak accepted it with a retort of his own, “Will it? Well I guess that I need more practice more to hone my skills. Shall we?”

Duron walked backward till he was about a arm length away from her. He learned with sparring with his cerulean brother's to never turn his back on his opponent. The distance was far enough to strike with unarmed combat or with his lakan. The akalak's fighting technique with a lakan was a combination of unarmed combat and dagger fighting. Since the weapon lacked the necessary length to parry a blow, he would either have to dodge or get close enough to stop the movement of her arm. With close combat, there was always a higher risk of getting injured. Duron decided that he would attack first. He wanted to test her defensive abilities, so he can come up with a effective attacks. When the cerulean was ready, he got into a forward facing stance with his right foot back and left foot forward. Clenching his left fist, he lifted it about fist high over his head, so the whole left arm covered the top of his head. The akalak's left hand was holding the wooden lakan, so the blade was coming out of the top of the fist. Duron was ready to attack now, so the playful demeanor vanished from face and was replaced by a emotionless mask of death. Duron circled stepped forward with his right foot and thrust the point of the wooden lakan towards the neck of his opponent. As he stepped forward, the cerulean brought his left fist down to his side, so he was ready to prepare for her counter strike.

[Ayatah]

"Sounds like a worthy secret to defend." She mused with a smile. The Myrian people had no airs and graces when it came to situations that other, more honourable individuals might turn their nose up at. The fact that Duron also seemed to be involved in such tasks only furthered Ayatah's liking for him. He wasn't a snob then, which probably explained why he seemed to so enthusiastic to train with a Myrian. Flashing him another dangerous look she added, "but good luck silencing me." It was all jest, she knew (or hoped), but it was fun. Armed with her daggers and wit, Aya was feeling pretty invincible.

The heat from their physical closeness, however, swiped her confidence aside and replaced it with something else. Lust perhaps, or was it a more genuine attraction? At this moment, Aya didn't care to learn which it was. From her previous romantic escapades, she knew the answer to that question would soon become clear. Nevertheless, she allowed herself another flirtatious quirk of her eyebrows before the Myrian stepped away from the male and prepared herself for their imminent training.

First, she twisted herself away from Duron, leading with her right shoulder rather than the front of her body. This would not only make it more challenging for the Akalak to land a blow, but also easier for Aya to dodge and avoid his blade. It was one of the first tactics the woman had learnt in Taloba; making an enemy's target as small as possible.

After this, she eyed up her opponent. He was far taller than most of the other men she had met, but he was incredibly well built as well. His strength and sheer size would be something she would have to consider carefully. His attacks would be powerful. Even if he didn't mean to, the big blue man could easily cause damage to Aya's slight form. She'd need to be extra careful and quick. But someone with his muscular bulk might struggle to defend himself against a close-up weapon. A weapon such as one of the daggers Ayatah was currently armed with. She hoped that her estimations were accurate, but only time would tell.

And the Akalak wasted no time to get in the first attack. His left hand raised up high, covering in face and wielding his lakan. He started to circle around Aya, who responded by moving herself to his right, unarmed side. The lakan jabbed out to her, catching Ayatah in the crook of the elbow. She moved quickly aside, turning in a tight circle to spiral away from the Akalak. At the same time, Ayatah extended her right hand, attempting to connect her right-hand dagger to his ribs. Her left, unfortunately once again sliced through the air rather pointlessly.

[Duron]

Duron watched as Ayatah quickly dodge predictable attack by moving to his unarmed side. However, he had to think on his feet because she pivoted and thrust the dagger at the exposed side of his ribs. As he brought his lakan back to his right ribs, he tried to defect the arm with her dagger with a middle block with his left arm, so when he brought back the lakan back to his right rib, he brought his unarmed arm out to the right side of the body and sweep across towards the outside of the body trying to defect the hand holding the dagger. However, the myrian was to quick with her attack, so the block was to slow to intercept her attack, and the point of the wooden dagger connected with his ribs.

Duron failed at his unarmed middle block and got stabbed by the myrian woman's dagger. It was a awful feeling loosing at game of life and death. Ayatah's second attack with her left dagger was so awful, he just moved his head slightly to dodge it while he was stumbling back out of reach The reject wasn't expecting a easy spar with a myrian woman, so he didn't care if he lost the spar. Rubbing his bruised rib, he gave her a smile and said with a chuckle, “I have to thank Wysar for my for my cyan skin because my brothers won't laugh at me for all the bruises that I will receive today.” The akalak didn't laugh for very long because the laughing caused his ribs to throb with a dull pain, so he said with a pained look on his face, “Don't worry, Ayatah. I will eventually get you...”

Duron got back into fighting stance, but this time, he held the dagger, so the blade of lakan was going out the bottom of his fist and the pommel was coming out of the top of his fist. Putting the hand holding the lakan over his head, the cerulean keep his left foot behind him and right foot forward. His left hand was resting at the side of his ribs. Duron quickly shuffled his feet forward, lifted his left knee, and thrust the heel of his bare feet towards her stomach. As he threw his thrust kick towards her, he brought his lakan back to right rib and brought his left fist up straight in front of his face to block any incoming attacks.

If the kick missed, blocked, or hit, Duron would quickly bring back his left leg back to protect his groin than place his foot back behind him. The cerulean knew that he needed to keep the myrian woman on her toes, so he wasn't such a one dimensional warrior. Predictability would get him killed, but reckless attacks would get him killed too, so regardless, it was just luck in the end. The reject knew that he was still learning his fighting style with his combination with his lakan and unarmed combat, so unlike Ayatah's dagger work, he seemed clunky compared to her.

[Ayatah]

The Myrian's blow landed on his ribs, earning a smirk from Ayatah. But her victory was short lived; Duron was soon back on the offensive, though he did spare Aya a brief chuckle. A little surge of excitement ran down Aya's spine. The thrill of the spar was getting to her, but she was also enjoying the Akalak's company more than she had expected. He had a wry sense of humour, which was not only something that she appreciated, but was also a trait that sometimes was lacking in his brethren. She stepped towards him, once again holding her body close to his. Only this time Ayatah allowed herself to poke the big male with the tip of her little finger. "Well, it looks like you've already caught me." She murmured, voice low and quiet.

Then the two separated again. Aya noticed Duron change the hold of dagger. And in fact she was so busy considering what this slight alteration meant, she did not see the Akalak's foot until it hit her in the stomach. She was instantly winded, and Aya threw her arms out wildly in some manic defensive move. Her daggers collided with his blocking arms, so all the Myrian could do was back away, get herself back together, and then come in on the offensive once again.

She came in slowly, circling the Akalak and watching him with dark, critical eyes. It had been a while since she had trained, and even longer since she had faced an actual foe. Not only was she physically out of practise, but Aya was also rusty on the tactical side of a battle too. The Akalak seemed to be holding himself defensively, in preparation to block her attacks. This left Ayatah with few options. She would need to be quick, efficient in her next move

Her muscles had started to ache, but the Myrian stubbornly ignored these. They would pass, she knew. And though it might mean she would be sore the next day, Aya was not about to give up on this particular fight. She pushed herself to come forward, stepping forwards and bobbing low to the ground at the same time. She came up at the last moment, swiping her right dagger upwards and diagonally. Her left hand jabbed outwards, though the way she held this dagger meant that the blades stuck out horizontally. Should she make any contact with him, it would be her knuckles that hit the Akalak and not either of the twin blades from her left-handed dagger. It was a potentially painful mistake she would learn from too late.