A Duel like No Other.

[WelshPsych]

Yuroic stood awkwardly in the middle of the training arena, he had been requested to spar with another Padawan although he was told that there was something different about this Padawan. That idea made Yuroic nervous, was it going to be some kind of Jedi prodigy, just fling him against the walls with the mere roll of his eyes. That would not be fun, hopefully it would be someone with as little experience as he did, though that would be hard. He looked at the weapons available, all melee and non-lethal but he could imagine they could cause some serious pain.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, reaching he moved his hand along the different weapons before stopping at a simple sword like stick. Seemed he wanted a dull and simple weapon among some of the more interesting choices, like the bo-staff, or the whip though perhaps that was not appropriate for him. He shook his head before looking around and noticed a second stick sword, grinning slightly as he grabbed that one. He felt the weight of both sticks, the second was slightly shorter but being in his non-dominate hand meant that he found it comfortable.

His clothes were more tradition styled Padawan robes, he felt better being out of the more dirty clothes that he had arrived in. There was a few marks of dirt and grease on his robes and face, from his attempts to secretly explore the Temple and find out any hidden secrets. Though it appeared the place was open as they told him, he wasn't sure he could trust them. No one had ever been completely honest with him.

He moved to one side of the ring with the two sticks in his hands, his grip occasionally testing their strength as he waited nervously for his opponent to approach.

[member="Kaden"] | [member="Arisa Yune"] | [member="Vitha Sat-thuron"]

 

[Kaden]

Footsteps echoed down the winding corridors of Voss' Jedi Temple. A metallic rustle accompanied the dull thuds; the sound of [acronym='Ancient Sith Warrior Armour']armour[/acronym] jostling with every step. The pace of the steps was relaxed, though a sense of determination was evident in the heelstrikes.

The source of these footsteps was slowly making its way towards the training area of the Temple and, more specifically; the arena. It'd be likely that anyone inside would hear Kaden approaching before he physically entered.

And then he did.

Striding in, the young Sith made his way directly towards today's opponent. He stopped a few feet away and pulled the hood of his cloak down, revealing an angular, crimson, face adorned with tendrils, bony ridges and golden jewelry. Amber eyes assessed the man in front of him whilst displaying a certain amount of stoicism in their irises. Kaden sniffed the air sharply and a tendril on his chin twitched. Through the slight odour of soil and grease, he could almost smell the nervousness of the man before him.

"Kaden," He introduced himself, voice rough from lack of use. "You're the one I'm beating up today?"

[member="Yuroic Xeraic"]

 

[WelshPsych]

He heard the slow, methodical footsteps of his opponent. It was intimidating to say the least, he inhaled deeply as he watched the other man walk into the room. Yuroic blinked, he held himself in a strong, prideful manner, one Yuroic had never used in his life but seen in some of the high ranking gang members. He rolled his shoulders as he attempted to throw away his anxiety and tension. A slow calm washed over him as he watched the Sith removed his hood.

Yuroic didn't recognise him as a Sith, having never learnt about the race all he saw was this tall intimidating red skinned alien with gold bling. It was interesting to say the least for him, a new species of alien always intrigued Yuroic, especially since he had met all kinds of aliens during his life on Nar Shaddaa. Yuroic moved cautiously as he heard the Sith ask if he was the one that was getting a beating, confidence was flowing strongly from him and it wasn't from overestimating his abilities. Yuroic was clearly a beginner which didn't look to boding well in this fight.

Well depends... If you are any good with a weapon then, yes, most likely. Yuroic gave a nervous chuckle as he spoke, it helped elevate some of the anxiety that was flowing from him in a wave.

[member="Kaden"]

 

[Kaden]

A smirk crawled onto the Sith's face in response to the man's comment. With a shrug, he spoke; "I've only been trained in combat by the greatest teachers the old Sith Academy had to offer..."

He meandered past the padawan and studied the various, non-lethal, weapons on offer. His red hand hovered over an oversized staff that was a wooden imitation of a double-bladed weapon before gripping it in the middle. He pulled it off the rack with a sharp tug and turned his attention back to his imminent adversary.

"... If you are as nervous as I think you are, that's good. It will feed your instincts -- if you don't succumb to it."

He tested the balance of his chosen weapon in a smart flurry and found its sweet spot after a moment or two.

"I won't go easy on you. Challenge makes us stronger," the Sith stated rather bluntly. "I don't think you have much to worry about though," he continued, an honest tone evident in his rough voice. "I'm quite rusty after my four thousand year nap, and I sense an inner strength within you."

[member="Yuroic Xeraic"]

 

[WelshPsych]

He heard the Sith and nodded initially, trained by someone from an old Sith Academy, which meant he was a former Sith apprentice or perhaps stronger... This was not going to end well for Yuroic but he twirled his sticks slowly in a methodical manner, waiting for his opponent to choose their weapon. When he selected the long staff Yuroic thought about difficulties that will make and the benefits he will have in the fight with his weapons in comparison.

He could feel Yuroic's nerves? Did that mean that Yuroic was going to give all his emotions away so easily to strangers when he had spent years shutting them away. Calm, you can do this. We fought plenty worse on Nar Shaddaa, I mean remember that massive rancor of a Wookiee you faced. We nearly died back then. He taps his sticks as he waits patiently, his breathing started slowly going into a calm rhythm.

Yuroic appreciated the honest from the Sith and he wasn't going to go down easily. So... thanks... Four thousand years? Damnnnn that's some nap... Well, I got to ask, are all Sith red? Just never seen one before and what's up with the beard? Is that skin or weird looking hair? Yuroic blurted out a load of questions as he watched the Sith get comfortable with his chosen weapon. Yuroic waited a minute before he moved slightly to the right, trying to get a figure on the Sith before attempting to raise his sticks in a threatening manner. Although it just looked like him holding them upright.

[member="Kaden"]

 

[Kaden]

A sharp, curt, chuckle tumbled out of the pureblood's mouth at the man's series of questions. He shook his head slightly and rolled his shoulders in preparation for their imminent bout of sparring before answering.

"I didn't plan on being frozen for that long, but I guess the Force has a funny way of defining our destinies... Yes, we're all red or shades thereof and, as for the 'beard', we all have... Tendrils. Though they differ in size and location from person to person. They're just flesh. These," He pointed to his eyebrow ridges, "Are cartilage... And these," he pointed to the points jutting from his elbows, "Are bone."

Kaden flourished his staff and assumed a balanced stance; ready to attack or defend, depending on the situation.

"Other than that, we're pretty similiar, you and I..." He jerked his chin and asked, "What's with the dirt and grease?"

[member="Yuroic Xeraic"]

 

[WelshPsych]

Yuroic chuckled as he listened, moving to the left sharply he swung the stick at the Sith's leg. He knew there was a likely chance that he was going to miss, so he jabbed his stick at the stomach of him. The attack was sudden so he was hoping that he would get in at least one of his hits in. However, his sudden attack left him vulnerable to any counters, his footing wasn't as steady as a well trained Jedi's would be so a sweep would land him on the floor.

Dirty and grease come from vent climbing, had to find out if Jedi were legitimate. Also this being there for others and selfless actions seems too good to be true. Yuroic answered as he grunted, figuring a way to defend himself from the position he was now in but it was looking difficult at best.

Okay, so the Sith are red. Shouldn't be difficult to spot one when we fight them then! Yuroic said naively as he attempted to gain a better footing but his limbs wouldn't respond as fast as he wanted.

[member="Kaden"]

 

[Kaden]

Indeed, Yuroic did miss his first swing - by mere millimeters. The second hit caught the pureblood off guard, who vocalised something akin to a pained grunt in response. That was quickly followed by his amber eyes recognising the clumsy stance Yuroic now found himself in and the urge to capitalise on his mistake and enact sweet revenge. In an instant Kaden swung one end of his staff down low, hoping to catch his adversary's leading leg behind the knee and send the man tumbling to the floor.

In any event, the pureblood began talking afterwards.

"That was a dirty move," he began, referring to Yuroic's swift surprise attack. "You'd have made a good Sith, they look for opportunism like that."

Kaden retracted a few steps and fell into his balanced stance once more.

"I doubt we'll fight many pureblood Sith, my kind is nearly extinct." The words carried with them a tint of sadness, thought it was hard to detect. "What's your name?"

[member="Yuroic Xeraic"]​

 

[WelshPsych]

Yuroic hit the floor with a grunt, the soft ground soften his land a slight, but it still didn't feel pleasant. He looked up at the Sith and felt a pang of sadness, to be one of the few of their kind must be a tough thing to deal with. Especially being in the wrong timeline as well. He jumped back to his feet, taking a beating wasn't difficult for Yuroic, he had been hit harder and much suffer worse.

He smirked as the Sith said he would have made a good Sith. Well, growing up on the street fighting for your life at times means you gotta fight dirty. Anyway, if my first blow had hit the second wouldn't have been needed so your own fault for blocking! Yuroic gave a cheeky wink before he race towards Sith.

Just before crashing into him, Yuroic slid past the Sith and jumped to his feet behind the Sith, another move from his street fighting. He swung the stick in his right hand towards the head and reserved the second for blocking, his feet were in a much better position than last time. Not wanting to be floored once more.

Yuroic, Yuroic Xeraic. And yours? He asked, he felt a strong enjoyment from duelling with this fellow Padawan. They were both outsiders within the Temple though for very different reasons.

[member="Kaden"]

 

[Kaden]

Amber eyes followed Yuroic's movements, analysing his every twitch and motion. When the man charged him down, slid and sent forth an attack, Kaden found it easy to block with one end of his staff. Pushing off his opponent's stick, he feigned a slash to Yuroic's gut in a smart flurry, but should the man move to block, he'd find the opposite end of Kaden's staff swinging around to hit him in the shoulder.

"Good to meet you, Yuroic. I'm Kaden," was the pureblood's response.

Truth be told, he enjoyed it too. The pent up frustration from conforming was let loose in the purest of primal exchanges; fighting. In the end, in these sparring situations, it doesn't matter who wins or loses. It's purely a tool to personally improve, whether that be through practice or physical therapy.

"Where are you from?"

[member="Yuroic Xeraic"]​

 

[WelshPsych]

Yuroic blocked the feint and felt the sharp hit on his shoulder which slapped off his skin audibly. Yuroic grunted in dissatisfaction as he swung both blades together in diagonal angle at the Sith with his full force behind them both. He was hoping the power would overwhelm any defence and strike at the neck or shoulder area.

Yuroic started a gentle bounce on his toes and moved around the room with a cautious gaze, watching the Sith at all times. Nice to meet you. I lived most of my life on Nar Shaddaa. Don't know where I was born... You?

Yuroic swung his blades readily himself for the next attack as he thought on how to counter and what to expect, he wasn't great with weapons but so far instinct hadn't been too bad with his training. Though he could just be kidding himself at the moment, with the worse yet to come.

[member="Kaden"]

 

[Kaden]

The counter-attack was ruthless but foreseeable. The pureblood took a hasty step back and turned his body as to dodge the diagonal onslaught, though one blade caught his nose as it fell downwards. A sort of 'oof' noise left the pureblood's mouth as he took another step back. His amber eyes burned fiercely, watering slightly as drips of blood fell from his nostrils.

"A Nar Shaddaa native becomes a Jedi? Nearly as outrageous as me becoming one," Kaden jested, before answering Yuroic's question. "I was born and raised on Korriban... You know what Korriban is, right?"

Some semblance of cheeky humour was coming to light. It turned out that fighting is therapeutic, after all.

With that said, the pureblood advanced in a blur towards his adversary. At the last possible moment, he jumped forward and thrust out his staff, intent on stabbing Yuroic squarely in the gut with the end of a blunt stick. It was a vicious move, enacted in milliseconds, and would probably hurt a lot should it land. Such an attack would normally be easily defendable but Yuroic was wielding a weapon in both hands. Conventionally, this meant his defensive capabilities would be minuscule and Kaden was banking on that being the case.

[member="Yuroic Xeraic"]​

 

[WelshPsych]

Once Yuroic saw the blood, he felt a deep feeling satisfaction in his belly. He moved the feeling away and growled low at the insinuation that his background meant that he was not qualified to be a Jedi. Before he could react the the statement with a blast of angry attacks, he watched Kaden give a flurry of moves. Yuroic couldn't keep an eye where the weapon was going before he felt a sharp stab to the stomach.

He fell to one knee, winded from the attack, his breath lost to him. It took several minutes before he caught his breath back. He waited a few seconds before rose to his full height. Once he stood fully, he stare at Kaden and gave a low growl, moving slowly, calculated. Then in a flurry of attacks, he pounced hard and fast.

He knew that the Sith's defence should be fast enough to block his attacks coming from his two weapons. They were independent and fling hard and fast, there was nothing organised about his attack so one could assume that retreating would be a good defence. But Yuroic was hoping his furious attacks would be too overwhelming for a clear thought of defending oneself.

[member="Kaden"]

 

[Kaden]

The pureblood paced back and forth whilst Yuroic recovered. Slight remorse creeped into his being in response to injuring Yuroic to the point the man needed a few minutes to recover. The challenge of battle would make him strong, though, and it was better to learn here, in relative safety, than out there; face to face with an actual Sith brandishing a crimson lightsaber.

"If you want to be a Jedi, you have to control that anger."

A small piece of advice before his opponent attacked again. It was dirty, wild and aggressive. Reminiscent of Kaden's eager peers in the Sith Academy. Having dealt with such attacks many times afforded Kaden the power of anticipation. He backed away immediately when Yuroic rose and maintained his distance during the brunt of the attack. He did his best to deflect blows that were within striking range, though a couple managed to break through and bruise various body parts.

Still, the pureblood maintained his composure and continued his line of defense until there was a break.

[member="Yuroic Xeraic"]

 

[WelshPsych]

He heard the Sith mention that he had to control his anger. He was annoyed that everyone seemed to be able to sense his emotions. He grabbed his sticks tighter as he felt another tang of annoyance at his attacks mostly being blocked by Kaden. He attacked low, aiming for the knees, hoping to cause the Sith to fall over.

He was leaving himself open to attack from a blow to the head. He was too driven to attack and defeat the Sith but he wanted the win, he wanted to prove himself to everyone that he belonged here. However, a blow to the head would quickly put him down possibly ending the duel then and there.

I can control my anger, can you? Yuroic retorted in a friendly but also critical point. He had heard rumours that Sith were prone to anger, why they used the dark side of the Force.

[member="Kaden"]

 

[Kaden]

Steely amber eyes watched as the young man attempted a swooping attack with Kaden's knees as the target. With adrenaline in his veins and the force flowing through him, the pureblood executed a smart tuck-jump that left Yuroic's attack swinging through thin air. Simultaneously, he brought one end of his wooden staff bearing down on the padawan's head.

After landing on the balls of his feet, the Sith replied.

"I try to. However, it can be a useful tool in the right circumstances... Don't tell anyone here I told you that, though."

[member="Yuroic Xeraic"]​

 

[WelshPsych]

Stars. Stars were all Yuroic saw for several minutes. He was on the floor, the back of his head throbbing hard. He felt his frustrations building up. Why wasn't he stronger? Faster? Perhaps he was never meant to become a Jedi, perhaps he wasn't capable of what was required from him. He punched the floor firmly in annoyance with his lack of skill before attempting to stand up. Sadly, he was too dizzy and ended up falling back on his bum.

He looked up to the Sith who was being open with him. Yuroic let out a sigh. Time to do the same. Well fought. I... I lost... He swallowed his pride.

How are you so strong? Am I just not meant to become a Jedi?

Yuroic left the question hang as he looked down and closed his eyes. He was ashamed of his lack of skills, he knew he was new but still, he left like he was so far behind everyone else.

[member="Kaden"]

 

[Kaden]

The steely gaze bearing down on Yuroic steadily softened as the man recovered. A small sigh escaped red lips as Kaden caught his breath and relaxed. Truth was, the man had put up a better fight than the pureblood had expected upon first laying eyes on him.

"Well fought," Kaden agreed, offering a hand to help the man to his feet.

"You have to remember that I've been training like this since I was thirteen. These things take time." The pureblood paused, briefly reminiscing about his childhood. A tendril on his chin twitched.

"You have natural aptitude, Yuroic. You'll make a fine Jedi one day."

[member="Yuroic Xeraic"]​

 

[WelshPsych]

He noticed the softening in the Sith's gaze and felt a deep relief. Seemed that this man was as kind as many Jedi he had met, he knew that Kaden too would make a good Jedi, no matter his blood. He clasped the man's hand and jumped onto his feet. He nodded his head as Kaden offered a small comfort.

I guess. I just feel at times, that I should be stronger than I am. That if I was more powerful then I could be more help, do more. But I just guess it is all in time... I look forward to another duel with you, perhaps when I learn more of the Forms...

He spoke honestly as he had been told to. He was previously too private and could feel that affecting his connection with the Force.

You will be a great Jedi too Kaden, even for a Sith! Yuroic teased friendly.

[member="Kaden"]

 

[Kaden]

The pureblood gave Yuroic a friendly slap on the shoulder. He appeared softer than when they'd first met.

"Don't be silly, you're still green. Time and practice will stand you in good stead, Yuroic. I'll always be around if you need a good thrashing."

His amber eye winked in jest, before Kaden walked over to the weapon rack and returned his staff. He paused for a moment, assessing its wooden construction, and then looked towards the training sabers on display.

"Should really use those, next time," he announced, a crimson finger pointing to the durasteel cylinders.

"Ha! Me, a Jedi. Still getting used to that," chuckled the Sith as he turned back to face Yuroic.

"Shall we call it a day?"

[member="Yuroic Xeraic"]​