Master of the Outer Rim Tournament!

[Varik Ryjin]

"No terms. Only what's already been laid out." He gestured toward the control room with its shattered glass, indicating the powers that be and wondering why the man had bothered to bring his rifle, since firearms were disallowed in this particular bout. Varik had opted to leave his own guns behind, since they'd be nothing but dead weight in this fight anyway. Instead, he carried a pair of dual-edged ulak blades sheathed at his lower back, a brace of folding kamas on either leg, punch daggers sheathed in the underside of his gauntlets, and a single machete-sized vibroblade sheathed handle-down on his back. None of the blades were lightsaber-proof, but all of them could handle a vibroblade easily enough.

In truth, this was where Varik was in his element.

Sure, he could use a blaster or slugthrower handily enough, but in a world dominated by ranged weapons, he never got to use his blades as much as he would like. His right hand slipped under the cloak as his opponent approached, and when it came back out held a kama blade, or as the Noghri liked to call it, a "fighting sickle". He thumbed the release, and the double-edged blade sprang free and locked into place with a distinct click, then he raised his left hand and curled his fingers in a "come here" motion, his visage twisting into a confident smirk.

[member="Filius Stellarum"]

 

[Filius Stellarum]

[member="Varik Ryjin"]
"As you wish," Filius said, dropping his rifle to the ground and kicking it to the side. He reached up and drew the single vibroblade from its sheath, then tested the deployable knives he had installed in his modular gauntlets. The blades, each as long as the gauntlet, or a man's forearm, and razor-sharp, deployed cleanly and he knew they were ready for battle. As he tested his weapons, Filius examined his opponent. The man looked confidant, and why shouldn't he? He had a whole arsenal of weapons, each one of them deadly. However, Filius was confidant too. He had been trained since birth to be an assassin, and though his main focus was his marksmanship, he was a master of Teras Kasi as well.

Filius approached his target slowly, knowing that it was up to him to make the first move. He moved as if in a trance, slowly, surely, and with an expression that was completely void of emotion. Inside his mind, Filius was focused on one thing: victory. The brainwashing in his mind ripped out all emotion, and left his mind as blank and focused as an assassin droid's. His every movement had a clear, defined purpose: if this didn't freak out his opponent, he didn't know what would.

Finally, when he reached double the length of the man's strike range with that particular weapon, Filius exploded. With a single, powerful kick he sent a torrent of sand flying at his opponent, then poised to throw the blade, making it appear as he released that he was aiming at the man's right bicep. However he hesitated for a split second at the moment of truth, and the blade flew towards his opponent's right thigh instead. As the weapon left his hand he was in motion, hurtling towards his opponent. With his vibroblade out of his hands he had to close the distance fast. He juked left, juked right, then, his cybernetic enhancements boosting his agility, he leaped left across his opponent's body, landing and rolling before jumping to his feet and coming at his hopefully injured and disoriented opponent with a flurry of blows, his arm blades leaping out with a series of quick jabs to the abdomen.

 

[Varik Ryjin]

With his goggles rendering the sand tactic obsolete, Varik neatly sidestepped the blade, stepping back with his right foot and rotating his torso ninety degrees. This also put his thigh out of the path of the knife, rendering the feint just as ineffective as the sand. Planting his right foot briefly, he bent his knees and dropped his weight as the other man began his dive, the trajectory of which would take him directly in front of the hybrid warrior. As he passed, Varik's right foot pushed off the ground, rocketing his armored knee forward at a velocity that would cause it to impact his opponents torso with considerable force mid-dive. Enough force to not only send him spiraling off-course, but also crack a few ribs.

The attacks the man had intended to launch after landing had yet to happen, and if Varik's counter mid-dive was successful, would never happen at all.

[member="Filius Stellarum"]

 

[Filius Stellarum]

[member="Varik Ryjin"]
So, it was going to be like that then. No matter, Filius could roll with the punches easily. The armored knee did nothing against his armored torso, not even knocking the wind out of the cybernetically enhanced and highly trained assassin. He took the hit, the force sending him spinning sideways. However, rather than try to counteract it and leave himself vulnerable, Filius allowed himself to spin and roll, rolling first under the force of the blow and then under his own power, using his elbows to push him. Eventually he stopped, spinning on his head and shoulders like a dancer to launch himself onto his feet. He landed cleanly and faced his opponent again with the same passivity he had shown before. He wasn't even breathing hard. The strike to his chest may as well have been a slap with a fly swatter with the armor he was wearing.

He thought about his situation. His attack had shown that he was weak on the offensive. He was a cyborg, but his strength was not in his strength. It was in his mind and his speed. He had to use them to his advantage. He had to fight defensively. He was an assassin, not a brawler. So, he stood loosely, his hands at his side and head down, his hood screening his face. In his peripheral vision he could just barely make out his opponent. He assumed a position of complete aloofness, as if he had no interest in his opponent. He retracted his blades, confidant he could deploy them quickly, and waited for his opponent to make the next move.

 

[Varik Ryjin]

Interesting. He'd felt the give of a blast vest when his knee impacted, albeit one with plate inserts, but his opponent was acting like he'd been hit wearing a full powersuit. That meant internal enhancements, probably the cybernetic variety if he had to guess. Varik had gotten enhanced genes from his dad, but that had always been a small comfort in a galaxy inhabited by people with full-blown superpowers. More and more, it seemed like everyone he ran into was either modding themselves or amping up on whatever force power was the latest fad. Stuff like that always made life difficult for people like him, but he'd been dealing with it all his life. This time would be no different.

Back in the shadow of the wall, Kresh raised his head and let out a low growl, but Varik called him off and pulled an ulak from its holster with his left hand. He advanced with purpose, letting the kama slide through his grip until he felt the end of the handle, extending his reach with the weapon to a good third of a meter. He wasn't much taller than the other man, but it would still give him the range to take advantage of any early attacks by those gauntlet blades. He would continue advancing until he stood just at the edge of the other man's range with those gauntlet blades, then stop and shrug questioningly.

"So that's it then? One good hit and you're throwing in the towel? I expected better."

Then he took a single short step forward and slightly right with that same foot, reaching up with kama to catch the edge of the man's hood and pull it off his head. If that didn't provoke a response, then there probably wasn't anything that would.

[member="Filius Stellarum"]

 

[Filius Stellarum]

[member="Varik Ryjin"]
Filius smiled as the man approached. The fool thought he was done. He seemed to be approaching with no caution. True, he did stand outside of Filius's threat range, which gave him an advantage, but then he reached forward, eschewing his advantage. His blade hooked the hood and it fell to Filius's shoulders, revealing pure white hair and two eyes, one a piercing blue and the other a blazing red, the cybernetics in it showing that they were working. The cybernetic eye glinted menacingly, but Filius still showed no emotion. Then, he said a single word.

"Fool."

With speed enhanced by internal cybernetics and years of training and practice, Filius reacted. Faster than any non-Force-sensitive eye could follow, his hand left hand rocketed up and grabbed the kama by the blade, the weapon, sharp as it was, being unable to penetrate the armored gauntlet. He gripped the weapon with adrenaline-enhanced strength, and held it there, holding his opponent in place. Then, before his opponent could draw another weapon, he lunged forward, pivoting on his left foot to reach forward and plunge his right-hand blade into his opponent's arm at the elbow, severing tendons and rendering the arm useless. Then he released the kama and, pivoting on his right foot, ejected his left-hand blade and slashed horizontally across his opponent's face. Finally, he pivoted once again on his left foot to slam a full-force kick to his opponent's chest, aiming to shove him away and reestablish range.

 

[Varik Ryjin]

Had Varik simply been waiting to react, the speed and ferocity of the attack would likely have done exactly as his opponent intended. Fortunately, he'd been shifting his own weight well before the man even uttered his insult, and by the time he began the pivot on his left leg the Umbaran was already poised to launch his actual attack. He simply released the kama to his opponent, rather than hold on and risk those gauntlet blades, and his prior step forward and to the right allowed him to continue shifting his weight and beat the cyborg to the punch. Or more literally in this case, the kick. With his new position somewhat to the left (from filius' perspective) of where his opponent expected him to be, he pulled his left leg up as he leaned back slightly to maintain balance, then delivered a vicious side kick at the man's left knee in the midst of his pivot. His opponent's own weight would guarantee the foot remained stationary, and armored plating or not, the force of the kick was significantly more than what would be required to hyperextend and very likely break the knee joint.

[member="Filius Stellarum"]

 

[Filius Stellarum]

[member="Varik Ryjin"] [member="Thraxis"]
The thought that Filius's weight would force his leg to remain stationary was laughable. It might have remained stationary if he was a Wookiee, or a Gamorrean for that matter, but Filius was far too agile to be forced into such a situation. As Filius had been pivoting on his left foot, twisting his body, he had been stepping forward with his right foot to enhance his range. (OOC: Sorry if that wasn't clear, but that was the intention of my action when I said I lunged forward) So, when the kick came, Filius merely shifted his weight to his right foot and pivoted on it, lifting his left leg clear of the kick, spinning, and aiming a full force kick at the head of his opponent, who was no doubt either in the middle of his kick or retracting his leg.

Spoiler

If there are any issues with this response, know that I did go over it in my head and physically to see how it would work. With the position I was intending, i.e. lunging forward to strike, I would have the right weight distribution to shift to my right foot and spin, moving my left knee clear of the attack and kicking at you. also know that I have only one post remaining in the match, and depending on when the post count starts, so do you.

OOC: Thraxis, did the ten post count start when Varik challenged me or when we started the actual combat?

 

[Varik Ryjin]

With the intended target of his kick no longer present, Varik let the momentum of the strike carry him forward and used his right arm to block the kick at his opponent's thigh, before it made it even halfway to full extension. He would then loop his right arm out, down, and around before the kick to his head could withdraw, attempting to catch the limb in a 'bite' between his bicep and ribcage, and holding it in place with the forearm looped tightly beneath it. Should that succeed, he would then bring his left hand up and forward, driving a hammer-fist strike toward the man's head. The strike by itself would be unremarkable and likely not cause much damage to a man as enhanced as this one, save for the notable addendum that the blow would drive the point of the ulak into his unprotected head. Simply leaning back wouldn't save Filius from the blow, as Varik would now be standing nearly between his legs and could easily make up the reach, with his right arm wrapped securely above his opponent's left knee.

Spoiler

Personally, I don't like the five post limit. In my experience, a fight only ends that quickly if the fighters are very mismatched and one has a huge advantage over the other. I vote we just keep going until Thraxis notices.

[member="Filius Stellarum"]

 

[Filius Stellarum]

[member="Varik Ryjin"]
The trapping of his leg was unexpected, but rather advantageous. The man thought it would win the battle for him, especially with a wicked blade heading right for his opponent's face, but in truth he had just sealed his own defeat. As the strike approached his face, Filius lunged up with his left hand, turning the strike aside to his left with a standard forearm block. He shifted his head to the right to make sure he cleared the strike, then did two game-winning actions. First he pushed against the ground with his solidly planted right foot, shoving against the man from the man's left, aiming to both further throw off his aim and send him onto the ground. Secondly, using his leg's position trapped in his opponent's grip to keep him upright, he ejected his right hand blade and aimed the deadly weapon right at the arm-hole of the man's chest armor, aiming to slide it neatly through the gap and into his shoulder.

If the whole thing ended like it should, the two men would end up on the ground, Filius straddling the man, who would be on his stomach bleeding from his left shoulder.

Spoiler

This is as good a place as any to stop. The wound is by no means fatal, and someone has to win.

 

[Varik Ryjin]

He'd been expecting the block, though the grab at his wrist was an interesting addition that very nearly ended it for him. The shove pushed Varik back, rather than forward, as the main point of contact between the two men was still Varik's grip on his left leg, and he simply stepped back and around Filius' right leg with his left, setting himself in a square stance that would have him facing his opponent straight-on rather than sideways. The new position placed his armpit handily out of reach of the intended strike with the gauntlet blade, while simultaneously removing his left wrist from the danger of the grab, unless Filius should decide to reach for it regardless.

It was from this position that Varik launched his next attack, letting his left foot rest for scarcely an instant before launching a knee strike straight up into Filius' groin, just as hard as the one that had begun this little altercation.

[member="Filius Stellarum"]

 

[Filius Stellarum]

[member="Varik Ryjin"]
OOC: Dude, you are going to need to clarify your strikes because our positions are getting all jumbled up and I think you are doing things you may not be capable of doing. Here is a list of our positions and actions from my POV:

1. My left leg is up, pinned to the right side of your ribcage by your right arm.
2. My right foot is planted securely, and has not moved.
3. Your left arm is coming towards my face
4. My left hand is coming up from the left side of your arm.
5. My right arm is striking for your armpit

Here are your and my actions, in chronological order, as well as some continuity issues:
1. You grabbed my leg with your right arm when it was supposed to be coming from your left "Filius merely shifted his weight to his right foot and pivoted on it, lifting his left leg clear of the kick, spinning, and aiming a full force kick at the head". I rolled with that one, because it didn't have any distinguishing factor.
2. You punched at me, aiming for my face.
3. I shoved your arm aside from the left side of your arm, pushing it to my left, your right, and shifted my head to the right, a "standard forearm block"
4. I shoved against you to push you to your right, my left. There was no movement of my leg, no step, just pushing from my current position "he shoved against the man with his solidly planted right foot, aiming to both further throw off his aim and send him onto the ground".
5. I struck at your armhole, my intention was to strike at your armpit
6. You pushed against my block, which would have no bearing on anything because of its position and the direction of my push, and you didn't even acknowledge my grabbing of your wrist.

All in all, I guess your intention was to force me onto my back before I could push you down onto your stomach, but your response doesn't make a lick of sense. I am essentially attempting to force you to turn to your right, and because you are lunging forward with your left arm to punch me, "lean in and twist to his own right" would only make you go faster. Plus, you are already being shoved to your right, so even if you didn't twist, your knee would hit my inner thigh, doing no damage. Also, you seem to be making a lot of movements, like putting your left foot behind my right, that were not mentioned in any posts, and if they were assumed, should have been clarified.

TL,DR: Your strikes are not making any sense and I ask that you please edit the post because you seem to be misinterpreting my posts and making a lot of assumptions as to my positions and actions.

 

[Varik Ryjin]

Spoiler

Hmm... yeah. There's some confusion going on here for sure.

I'll respond in the discussion thread rather than clutter the IC thread further.

[member="Filius Stellarum"]

 

[Filius Stellarum]

[member="Varik Ryjin"]
The man might think he had this in the bag, but he obviously had never fought Filius. The man, in the heat of the moment, must have forgotten that Filius was still clutching the kama by the blade. Retracting the blade from his right gauntlet he moved with lightning speed to push down on the man's thigh as he struck. Instead of taking the hit with his groin, he took the knee with his hand, pushing with all his strength against the strike to slow it as much as he could and allowing himself to be lifted up with the force of the blow. It still hit, and still hurt, but not nearly as much as an unobstructed blow would have. Plus, he had felt pain before. The blow was not crippling. Simultaneously, with a move impossible for anyone without years of training, Filius twisted the weapon in his left so the hilt was in his grip and plunged downwards. Only by a miracle would the man be able to avoid the blade striking something, and in any case, as he settled down after the initial force of the attempted blow to his groin, Filius launched again from his right foot, this time shoving with all his weight and force against the man, jumping up and driving his own knee into his opponent's abdomen and throwing all his weight and every single ounce of force into one goal: get the man on his back.

 

[Varik Ryjin]

Unfortunately, it was not to be. As the hand holding the kama adjusted, Varik would hook the blade with the blade of his ulak and pull it free of the other man's grip in the moment it was compromised as he tried to flip it around, sending it skittering away in the sand of the arena floor. He would then return to his previous footing as the next attack was launched, a flying knee aimed at his chest. No doubt another attempt to put him on his back, but Varik wasn't having it. Instead, he stepped back with his right foot and pivoted the man 180 degrees, using his own momentum to enhance the spin, then body-slammed him to the ground on his back as he released his hold on the left leg. With both feet off the ground, Filius would have no means of preventing the slam, and once it was finished Varik would step back and graciously wait for his opponent to recover.

[member="Filius Stellarum"]

 

[Filius Stellarum]

[member="Varik Ryjin"]
Filius, realizing the situation and expecting the slam, tensed enough to avoid having the wind completely knocked out of him. He took a deep breath and, putting his hands behind his head, propelled himself to his feet. He faced his opponent again, but he was finished with this fight. There no longer was any reason to continue the fight. It had become pointless. Filius had much better things to do. Any other person may have been angry, ashamed, dismayed even at their defeat, but any emotions Filius would have had had been suppressed long ago. He had no qualms about admitting he was outmatched. He was good hand-to-hand, but no assassin in their right mind would have gotten into a brawl like this. It had been a welcome diversion, but now Filius had to get back to his real work.

"Enough of this," he said, brushing sand from his clothing, "I will give you this. You are the victor, fair and square." Filius stood before his opponent, all aggression gone, and extended his hand for the man to shake. His human side was peeking through his brainwashing a little, telling him to end the match with good sportsmanship.

"It seems I have much to learn when it comes to hand to hand combat," he said as the man hopefully shook his hand, "We should get together sometime on more, relaxed terms." Filius pulle back his hopefully shaken hand, nodded, and then pulled his hood back over his head, turned, and walked to the edge of the arena where he melted back into the shadows.

OOC: Thanks for the great fight man. Maybe we can have a marksmanship contest sometime

 

[Thraxis]

Thraxis had been pre-occupied, trying to discuss the matter of the tournament with the so called, 'newly inducted tournament master'. "Listen here ya bloody twat, I don't care if-" his angry ranting being cut short as the new official responded, "Look. You entered the tournament, now your stuck in it." he responded in a calm and kind voice. Thraxis only rubbed his brow, before putting his helmet back on and twisting to the rest in the arena. "Well. That one is going to the Pitt once I am finished here." he continued grumbling as he scouted out the last of the real competition.

His eyes narrowed as he saw courtesy on the battlefield, it seemed Filius had been taken out by one of the mercenaries who joined up. A bit of a shock, he expected Filius to last longer, then his eyes turned to Solann, who seemed to have been lucky enough to not get to involved in the fighting, "Great. Solan is in peak condition, I got sand down my throat and I imagine the bounty hunter ain't in much better shape." he coughed as he took a few steps back, deciding to watch what could unfold before him.
[member="Solan Charr"] [member="Filius Stellarum"]

 

[Varik Ryjin]

Cautiously, and against his better judgment, Varik took the hand and shook it firmly, taking care to remain out of the way of those vibroblades as he did so. Normally, he wouldn't even have returned the courtesy, but his opponent had been a difficult one to keep up with and that wasn't something he ran into often. Usually the fights he got into were more along the lines of a spite match, and whether it was against him or in his favor was about a fifty-fifty shot. He finally let himself relax when the man turned and walked away, and the tension bleeding out of his posture was visible. He'd managed to avoid taking any significant injuries from those vibroblades, but only just, though he knew he'd have bruises in the morning. Turning back toward Kresh, he moved off the field then turned back to face the center and observe the next bout.

[member="Filius Stellarum"]

 

[The Banshee]

A single figure sat in the shade of what seemed to be a former beast pit within the Hutt Cartel arena. Although it was in the late reaches of night, the bright lights shining down still illuminated the arena enough to make a man want some peace and shade.​

​

From someone outside the pit, the figure would seem to be a three-dimensional shadow moving around in the low-light area. To someone standing in the den with it, however, they would see a man.​

​

He was of good height and heavier-than-normal weight, his entire body covered in jacked muscles from years of hard physical conditioning and heavy combat. Scars covered his body, further testifying to the fact he was a hardened combatant. He wore a white tank top stained with motor grease, which he would wipe off his hands and onto his slack cargo pants once the fight had finished. He had just gotten done putting a small modification on his set of armor in preparation for the fight ahead, and was now ready to do a little brawling.​

​

He would step out of the beast pit and into the arena, his eyes squinting to adjust to the sudden changes in light. He would lean up again the giant steel door frame, looking around. He saw the two duelists shake hands, and he knew he was up. Axel looked around the arena for a moment, trying spot someone who had yet to fight. His eyes fell upon the lone figure of [member="Solan Charr"], standing near one of the far walls. He would cup his hands to his mouth and shout, "Hey, you in the fiber armor! You want to step up to the plate?"​

​

[member="Thraxis"] [member="Lady Kay"] [member="Varik Ryjin"] [member="Filius Stellarum"]​

 

[Aithne Charr]

[member="The Banshee"]

Solan's eyes were drawn to the very vocal enemy he noticed was trying to actually go for the ones with energy still in them. To be fair Solan would have too in his old times, hell maybe if he had the force he would simply out of the rush that it gave him. But this man was simply doing o for a different rush and to not be cheated out of a good fight.

He had to admit, he admired a person's want for a good fight. Solan was much in the same way when it came to wanting a fight and yet he had to think for a quick moment just how to deal with this one. From what he could tell, this man didn't wear alot of armor himself but to be honest it could be his eyes playing a trick on him in this light. They were bad enough and without the force to supplement them, it could get bad if he were forced into a ranged duel with this man.

Luckily that didn't look to be the actual deal with this one. Infact, it seemed he would be treated to a very personal brawl. "I would, but i forgot my batting equipment at home. Gonna have to pass on this one, but if you want to. Go ahead." He smiled at the man as his hands took two of the daggers he had on him in hand, waiting for the first move from the other.