Private Mandalorians like To Punch Things

[Arcus Gladia]

Planet: Kestri
Location: Tor Valum


He'd never been to Tor Valum before, funnily enough, it was like he avoided this part of space. He did, in many ways, but never of his own accord. Buir Magis had always valued seclusion through their time together. Arcus could understand why. Clan Gladia might not have been very well known but they had tendencies that could outshine some of the vilest war crimes. Unlike Magis, Arcus had no such feelings. He was going to be proud of his heritage, or it was going to kill him. In all honesty, it probably would kill him.

Clink!

The sound of metal gauntlets hitting helmets snapped Arcus from his trance-like state. He looked down from the railing, into the dirty pit below. The two were nearly defenseless, no weapons, few pieces of armor, it was a brawl. At least they were doing it honorable, despite their lack of experience. They were both young, but Arcus had seen younger in the pit today. Right now, he was merely another spectator on the railing.

He folded his arms over one another. He made soft, passive grunts as he analyzed each of the fighter's stances, movements, all the while holding a sack in one of his hands. The entire time he watched, his hand clamped even tighter around the sack.

He wondered, who did this planet have to offer aside from an interesting bout?


Voices of The Deep | Gwyneira Vizsla

 

[Gwyneira Vizsla]

As the two young men fought, they were closely observed by a young woman in the crowd just outside the pit. Wearing a jacket, she pulled her hair back as she watched how both boys went about fighting their opponent. Ultimately, it was a twi'lik boy, tall and bulky, whom had won over the lithe yet sturdy zabrak. The green skinned twi'lik immediately roared for his next opponent. The girl walked towards the pit's walls. Her cybernetic leg clanked as she pulled her jacket off. Against Kestri's cold, even underground, her top and shorts failed to keep her warm. But, she knew the battle was about to make things plenty hot. Battle gloves glistening on her waistline, she climbed the wall and tapped in.

She jumped and landed. She gracefully landed with a trained thud, standing as the twi'lik turned and looked at her. The pale girl short and petite, yet also boasted trim muscle and a four pack. That, and the cybernetic leg was a badge that showed that she was experienced. She reached and tightened the Clan Krayt armband she wore, then pulled her gloves off their string. She slid them onto her hands as she observed the twi'lik's body language.

He had his body open and exposed, arms confidently at his sides while his feet pointed outwards. He was confident. He was far taller and heavier built than Gwyneira, he visibly had the advantage. Visibly. He scoffed at the lightly built girl and darted forward. His winning streak was making him restless. The girl smiled. The young woman side stepped, light on her feet. She ducked and aimed a punch at his knee before doubling back. He had been hit! She wanted to press the attack, but with the size difference she needed to harass, not engage. He grimaced, then looked up to her and jumped in for the attack.

This time, he was far more skittish, like herself. She gritted her teeth as she weaved around, trying to find an opening. Eventually, she noticed that he was not raising his right arm fully at all. Injury from another match? She leapt behind him and swerved up to his side, raising her cybernetic leg and from behind, landed an upper kick to his arm. As he reacted to the pain, falling to his knees, she seized her chance. She ran in front of him and punched him solidly in the teeth. Must have had a glass jaw, for he flew back and landed on the floor unconscious..

She slowly loosened from her combat stance. With a puff of visible air, she sighed and turned to leave, willing to let more combatants in. She climbed out of the pit using the frosted over ladder. Eventually finding her jacket where she left it, she threw it back on and returned to watching the matches while drinking some water.

Wow, she really needed this. With everything tormenting her heart and mind right now, she needed her mind and body both working out, focused on something less serious yet serious enough. Forming battle strategies and learning through observation with her mind; fighting and training with her body. She really needed this.

Arcus Gladia Domina Prime

 

[Domina Prime]

​

A collection of keen, azure eyes flicked and studied and stalked with great ambition and hunger. Jaws tightened, rows of teeth rattling together quietly as the xeno focused its gaze downward towards the clashing and bashing of fist and skulls. The feral foundling twisting her head and that elongated tail swishing passively as the delight spectating filled her with a sense of purpose. Dima admired the motions of unarmed single combat. Observing how her cousins carried themselves, in which ways they defended and how they maintained their posture. It almost seemed like a dance from what the alien girl could observe, but it seemed not everyone quite knew the steps. This was very evident when a fellow foundling Gwyneira Vizsla entered the pit for her session. Their dance did not last long, the twi'lek boy suffering blow after blow and Gwyn unrelenting in her tactical offense. A single, final blow to the chompers was the last strike required before Gwyn took victory.

"REJOICE! MIGHTY GWYN IS VICTORIOUS! DIMA KNOWS HER!" The azure xeno blurted out excitedly. Surprisingly, many eyes from the sidelines would find their heads quickly being pulled upwards towards what appeared to be a silk woven hammock attached snugly in the nook of the ceiling overseeing the pit just above the spectating stands. Dima noticed perhaps this was unwise, among the many helmets Dima did recognize one face. And when the two met eyes Dima internally groaned as she slowly just went back into her hammock sheepishly. Feeling as if she were in trouble for the sudden outburst.

"Ahh, Foundling. I had wondered if you would arrive for today's displays. How long have you been up there hmm? Hiding from us are you now?" A cold, stern voice called out.

"Is this one in trouble again? Dima will be quiet..." Dima sighed with a bored expression. The veteran chuckling lightly as the tall humanoid stepping forward towards the rail over the pit and gesturing down towards it as the Twi'lek as they were removed.

"No, but you have been missing your lessons with the others. So perhaps you'd like to show me what you've been observing up there?" They mused, but spoken in a way that felt like an order. Dima groaned like an annoyed teenager and dragged herself from her hammock, swinging her legs over the side and throwing herself down and grabbing the side beam of the structure that held up the spectate stands. Scuttling down like a spider as the drillmaster gestured for another foundling. Who emerged from the gate was what appeared to be a wookie, lightly protected in a few straps of armor and equipped with heavy gauntlets. Letting out a deafening cry and shook his arms in the air as if to excite the crowd. Dima jumped down into the pit to join them, a single piece of armor strapped to her chest and smaller plating on her gauntlets and shinguard keeping her somewhat protected.

Dima's five eyes focused intensely, teeth chittering in excitement as the bored Xeno rattled that tail with hostility and the drillmaster shouted with a gesture.

"BEGIN!"

The wookie was first to move, lifting its massive arms and pulling his fist together and bringing them down as if he possessed the heaviest hands of god. Attempting to crush the Xeno and slamming those gauntlets into the floor as Dima quickly jumped to the side by a few yards. Long, alien legs equipped with incredible leaping power kept her out the wookies reach as he swung his arms back upward to try and catch Dima again. Noticing an opening as he tried to recover from his second attack, Dima hissed and dashed inward, striking the wookie to the side with what she could manage of a fist and only landing with a THUD.

The wookie scoffed, Dima's eyes dilating as her mistake quickly settled in.

"Whoops-." The next thing the xeno knew her vision was rocked and dazed, a single punch to the side of her head hitting her with such impact her face recoiled and slammed into the side of the pits walls. Dima stumbled back, her upper arms holding her face as she whined, bleeding azure blood from her nose and hissing. "Ow! Dimas face!" She complained and caught her footing. Only to receive a kick square to her chest which only sent her flying back and tumbling into the dirt. Rolling into a recovery as her talons planted into the dirt. And with the distance gained Dima twisted her neck and shook away the pain. Her vision cleaning and her tongues slipping past the teeth along her jaws as a snarl erupted in her chest.

The wookie, emboldened and confident charged forward, this time adopting a boxing-like stance and going for a large haymaker.

A tail wrapped around his leg and Dima ducked under the strike, tail tightening and coiling hard around his ankle as Dima then jumped onto the Wookie's shoulder, taking a leg and wrapping it around the arm he had swung with. Two of her arms snatched his face, yanking his head back while the tail pulled with incredible strength far greater than his own. The grappling position quickly crumbling the wookie and bringing him down to ground game where Dima hissed violently. Once he crashed, she re-positioned, jumping onto his exposed back her two arms headlocked him, her tail grabbed a leg and pulled it backwards. And out of her own back, tendrils spilled from her anatomy and what followed cause some of the crowd to gasp in shock. At least from those who did not know of this foundling. Sharp talons attached to swishing tendrils snatched the wookies arms and wrapped them into some strange ball. What followed was...bizarre. Rather than choke out the beast the Xeno proceeded to roll them about in the mud, pushing the wookies face into the dirt and pulling INCREDIBLE strain on all of his limbs as they bounced into walls and tumbled about dramatically. The wookie yelling in distress and clearly submitting as Dima cackled and laughed in delight. "SILLY BEAST DIMA IS TOO SMART FOR YOU!" She hissed as the Drillmaster shouted after.

"Enough! Exercise over, let him go." They demanded. Dima slowed their rolling down to a stop and loosened her grip on his limbs. Her tail returning to her and those tendrils retreating back into Dimas core as the wookie laid there groaning. Dima looked back at the crowd and threw all four of her arms out and bounced around in excitement.

"This one did it Gwyn! Dima is a winner and she did it without her claws and teeth did you see! Dima is very honorable and brave~" The alien delighted with whimsy. Drillmaster facepalmed his helmet, shaking his heads and praying to Manda.

"Foundling, these are supposed be hand to hand combat sequences i don't even know what yo-" They stopped, inhaled, and stared deeply at Dima when she saw the xeno pouting and looking rather unbecoming. The drillmaster sighed deeply. "You know what, nevermind. Well done foundling. Go get cleaned up." The corrected their frustration, the glee in Dimas face returning and the alien creature leaning back up onto the stands and crawling back up into the crowd. Looking for Gwyn so Dima could gloat of her victory.

"Gwyn! Ohhhh Gwyyyyyyyn, Dima is victorious! Dima is becoming fierce mandalorian warrior yes!? It is written for sure!" The Xeno quipped, her twisting eyes all searching the crowd and her tail swishing about and slapping everyone against the leg and armor.

"Hey! Ow!" One alerted, swatting Dimas tail away.

"C'mon watch it kid, damn." Another grumbled moving away from the general space Dima occupied.

In the Xenos search for Gwyn all her five eyes seemed to miss a mandalorian right in front of her, bumping directly into Arcus Gladia and recoiling for a moment. "This one is sorry Dima searches for friend." She bluntly stated as she twisted around him to move through the spectators and further annoy everyone in general.

​

 

[Arcus Gladia]

Arcus recoiled as the 'girl' did. In honesty, he didn't quite know what to call it, but the thing looked feminine. He supposed as long as she was kin, it didn't really matter. Still, the way she fought was... Unorthodox. But who was Arcus to judge someone by the way they fought? He'd still probably judge, in his mind at least.

"No need to apologize, vod..." He responded, quietly, turning his attention back to the pit.

He approached the railing again, looking down. No one had entered after that display. He could imagine why, after what Domina Prime had done, and Gwyneira Vizsla 's dispatch of the Twi'lek. He folded his arms over one another, propping one up and resting his chin on it. There appeared to be some Mando'ade here of considerable skill. Now he was intrigued, moreover, he wanted to see what one of them was capable of. If there were more here like the cybernetic girl and the other sister, Arcus could really put himself to the test.

Truly, it was a matter of skill and passion. The more passion you put into your ability, the better your chances were. Each swing needed a purpose, each strike needed a target. The blue one had demonstrated the power of methodless fighting, however, and its effectiveness. Arcus would make a note of that. Perhaps it was time for him to demonstrate his method?

"I wonder who'll be next." Said a calm, cautious voice from Arcus' flank.

The Gladia Clansmen turned to it, revealing a small, old Mando'ade. He was without his helmet, and he had seen many battles by the shape of his beskar. Arcus turned back to the pit. "What do you think of the two that just fought?"

"The winners or the losers?" He asked in response.

"The winners."

The old man thought for a long time. "The pale one, Gwyneira? She is of clan Krayt. The other is clanless as far as I know, I wild one too. I tend to steer clear of her."

Arcus nodded as he spoke, listening intently. "What is Clan Krayt?"

The old man chuckled. "You can always ask her yourself."

Arcus thought on that, silent for a long moment. "... Perhaps."

With a calculated motion, Arcus reached around to his back, pulling off his vibroblade, then his bowcaster. He carefully placed them to the side of the railing, looking down at the pit once more. The old man gave a curious look.

"Going in?" He asked.

Arcus nodded, putting his hands on the railing. He wanted to see what the kin of this place were made of, and how much they could take.

"Be careful, the younger Mando'ade can be a little vicious. They want to prove themselves and after the previous two displays," The old man went quiet, "Just be careful."

Arcus nodded again, before lifting himself however the railing, falling into the pit below. He moved to the center, looking towards the spectators above. He closed his eyes and waited. Then, as on cue, another pair of feet hit the pit floor. There was a grumble among the others, as they paced towards the center. Arcus opened his eyes, turning to the challenger. He was young but had a certain determination in his eyes. He snarled at the Gladia Clansmen, putting his fists up in a makeshift combat stance.

"Come on, hit me!" The challenger roared. Up with the spectators, a small group of youth made cackling cheers for their friend. He had this, he was the strongest among them, he was trained.

Either enthralled by stupid or being pumped up by his friends' cheers, the younger Mandalorian charged Arcus with a battle cry. Raising his armored fist, preparing to strike the other with all his might. Then, another armored fist crashed into his face, knocking him onto the pit floor. He was out cold. The spectators were silent now, Arcus stared at the unmoving boy on the floor. He went down on one knee, feeling the boy's chest. He was alive, thankfully. He gave the unconscious challenger a pat on the chest.

"You'll be fine..." He muttered.

Soon after, Arcus had returned to the railing, climbing up. A few gave the Mandalorian a wide berth, others did not. He returned to the side of the old man, who now stared at him with slightly more curious eyes. Arcus picked up sword and bowcaster, reattaching them to his back.

"Impressive." The old man said.

Arcus shook his head. "Unnecessary." He corrected.

 

[Gwyneira Vizsla]

​

As Dima ran up to Gwyn and started boasting about her victory, Gwyn chugged her water. After finishing it off, she lowered the bottle and gave Dima an approving smile. Attention and approval meant the world to Gwyn, and she was determined to give others that same acknowledgement.

"You did great, Dima! To say wookies are tough opponents is an understatement."

Gwyneira looked down to the pits as another fight started, "Keep up your training, and you will keep improving."

Gwyn winced at the one shot that knocked the opponent out cold, "Oof. Hey, Dima..."

Gwyneira threw her empty water bottle into a trash bin after observing that recent fight. She looked down at the winning Mandalorian and his calmer demeanor. As he climbed out of the pit, Gwyn continued to speak, "... It would be a good idea to observe all these fights. Learn from both the winner's moves and the loser's mistakes. Observation can be just as crucial as physical training. Especially when you learn things you never learned in your own training."

She then pulled her jacket off and handed it to Dima, "I'm restless. Why don't you watch me now, then tell me what you've gleaned." She totally liked the idea of the extra attention.

Gwyn then jumped down into the pit. She landed and looked up. Pulling her combat gloves on again, she wordlessly looked around, wondering who her next opponent would be.

Arcus Gladia Domina Prime