Elendor
A challenge met
Alimah and Djembe spar, though they do not seem to agree on the terms
Sort Date: no date set
Location: Square of Judgment
Game Date: March 3047
IC Time: Night
Description: The Square of Judgement
The night settles deadly quiet around the square. An aura of dark foreboding hangs over this place. A huge gallows with sits in the far western edge of the square. The apparatus dominates the square--the nightly prison cleaning has left a body hanging on the rope. In front of the gallows, a tall whipping-post juts upward. The post is rough and scarred from use. You shudder when you envision the goings-on here--you can almost hear the echos of the screams reverberating from the surrounding buildings.
In front of all the gruesome devices of death and torture a series of lines are painted on the ground. Evidently, the area is also used for 'gentlemen's duels' and training for combat.
The stalls and shops around the square are silent for now, closed off, with only the most desperate merchants remaining open to sell their wares to the shadows. A few lit torches remain to remind passers by of the excitement of the day.
The sky is clear and the stars shines brightly. The midnight spring air is hot and dry around you.
Obvious exits:
Herb Shop, Mermaid's Arms, Marketplace, and East
[+TIME] Middle-earth time is:
Midnight on Sterday, Day 10 of March.
Execute the +TIMEFRAME command for year information.
Real time is: 14:06:31 MDT on Mon Jun 15 2009.
IC year: 3047
Night has fallen and the Square is empty except for a few remaining merchants, most of whom are packing up their goods. In the lined area of the square, though, a woman waits, helmet under one arm, leather arm protecting her body. A scimitar hangs from her hip, sheathed.
[Djembe(#29535)] "I see my message found its way to you," announces a hoarse voice from somewhere in the dark, heralding the approach of a flourish of white robes. Slow, deliberate steps bring the figure out of the shadows of night until the light from a nearby torch falls across the man's hooded countenance and reveals the bushy eyebrows and dark hair of Djembe Sanbanyi.
"It seems no time other than the evening will have us," he says presently, stopping a few feet short of the woman in his approach. The tone of amusement in his voice contrasts sharply with its gruff nature as he adds, "Or perhaps, we have no other time."
[Alimah(#24218)]
"Day, night. It matters not to me," Alimah shrugs, turning to face Djembe. "If the evening suits you better, all the same." She pulls on her helmet, still watchign the man.
Barjad lingers by one of those few remaining stalls, a cobbler's by the look of it, seemingly attempting to dicker over something. A few coins change hands before he tucks something away into his belt-pouch. At the sight of the female loiterer his brows draw down in a frown and he walks that way, ignoring the gentle creak of the gibbet-rope as he passes.
At Djembe's sudden appearance, that frown deepens. "This night, you spill blood not ale?" comes the soft, nasal query as he nears the pair.
[Djembe(#29535)] A mane of black curls escapes the hood of Djembe's robes as he pushes it back, only to be trapped again moments later as he places his own helmet onto his head. "Your spirit never fails me," he says to Alimah, a hint of condescention in his voice. The pirate's son then turns his attention to Barjad and acknowledges the man with a nod. "Only a few drops," he answers.
"I think we both have some to spare."
[Alimah(#24218)]
Alimah, in her turn, snorts--first at Djembe, then at Barjad. "And this shocks you?" she asks, though the question is not clearly addressed to either of the men. She draws her scimitar, holding the blade up to check its edge. "I challenged the man," she continues, clearly to Barjad. "He is here to meet that challenge. But only a little blood will be spilled, rest assured. There are Stonelanders to slay."
Barjad lets out a snorted breath at the two answers. "When will 'some' be had? Second blood? Third? A .. a big hurt will win nothing, and there are Stonelanders to fight." The right side of his mouth pulls back at Alimah's words. Stubbornly, then, he offers - if one could call it that, "I will watch, and see Umbar loses not a fighter."
[Djembe(#29535)] "Only as much as necessary," is Djembe's addition to Alimah's statement, and he directs it at Barjad before returning his eyes and his attentions to the woman. "As I said once before, I could hardly see fit to bring an end to such an interesting spirit," he says with the faintest glimmer of a smirk twisting his lips for only a second before drawing his own scimitar from its sheath with a loud -SHINK-. He turns and takes a few steps away before turning back to the pair and eyeing them expectantly.
[Alimah(#24218)]
"Admit the truth, Djembe Sanbanyi. You are puzzled and intrigued by me. You wish to know more about me or at least to possess me, if nothing else. You want to know where I get the nerve to say the things I do and why I am so curious about you." Alimah grins as she says this, and begins circling in a low crouch, her blade held out parallel to the ground. "One way or another, whatever it is, something has drawn you out here at midnight to have a duel with me."
"I will let you make the first stroke."
Djembe's smirk is met by a grunt from Barjad as he steps back, out of the way, arms folding across his chest. Does his frown deepen as Alimah speaks, the soft words carrying in the quiet square? His gaze flicks from one bladewielder to the other, and when it rests on Djembe it is wary.
One or two passers-by linger, curious the merchants, however, continue to pack up and go on their way, ignoring what in this place is almost a nightly ritual. Umbar is, after all, not short of blood.
[Djembe(#29535)] "Or perhaps the delusions of an infatuated mind make you hope so," Djembe retorts, playfulness working against his gruff voice, making the statement come out rather awkwardly. He circles too, legs bent at the knees, one hand out for balance, the other in possession of his blade. When Alimah suggests he attack first, he slowly shakes his head and adds, "Don't let that spirit fail you now--you come and find what your challenge has bought you."
[Alimah(#24218)]
"Oh, I am deluded all right," Alimah sneers, continuing her slow circle. She smiles at the man--and as Djembe puts out a hand for balance, the flat of her sword blade strikes out swiftly toward it.
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar and mildly wounds him!
Djembe snatches his hand back as the blade licks it, a few drops of blood tumbling onto the ground as he does so. A sound not unlike a short laugh escapes his lips, cut off prematurely when he growls, "A lucky strike, lady. Now see where it's got you!" The man lunges forward suddenly, the blade of his scimitar aimed at Alimah's swordhand.
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar, but Alimah parries the attack with her Scimitar!
The corner of Barjad's mouth twitches slightly at Djembe's offer and the result arising from it. Amber eyes brighten a little as he continues to watch the pair, and Alimah in particular.
His interest is noted. A rough, Haradaic voice grates in his ear, "Nice, innit? See you've an interest in the gal - care to put money on it? A silver she floors him within three strokes." The owner of the voice is half-hid in voluminous robes, but his wheedling tone is not pleasant on the ear. Nor, for that matter, is the scent that accompanies him on the delicate nose.
[Alimah(#24218)]
With a laugh, Alimah turns quickly to her right, her blade coming up to meet Djembe's with a clash. She follow through on this stroke, using the momentum to try to hit Djembe on his hip, careful to use the flat of her blade as she does so.
"Three silver?! Is that all I am worth?!" she calls out indignantly.
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar, but Djembe parries the attack with his Scimitar!
[Djembe(#29535)] Seemingly unaware of the game of odds generated regarding his fate, Djembe swiftly moves his blade between Alimah's and his own hip, arriving only barely in time to stop the attack. With a flex of his body at the waist, he pushes her scimitar away and pushes forward, the tip of his blade carefully at his opponent's opposite shoulder. "Your attentions should not be elsewhere, lady!" he cries as he does so. "Or you might find you have greater concerns than a few coins!"
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar, but Alimah parries the attack with her Scimitar!
Barjad, without turning, responds to the would-be gambler in a nasal hiss, "I do not give money on the .. the will of the Power. The thing that is, is." He shakes his head, for all that he seems to be looking at a safe bet. Alimah's words bring a bark of laughter, and he calls out more loudly, "Your price .. worth? .. is higher than coin." The right side of his mouth pulls back a little further as he watches the seemingly even match.
The fellow who had offered the money, on the other hand, protests (still in a wheedling voice), "Lady, I am but a poor man ..." He chuckles, overloudly, at Djembe's jibe.
[Azradi(#20135)]
At the far end of the square, a tall figure stands watching the duel - shrouded in shadows and silence.
[Alimah(#24218)]
Another clash of steel on steel as the woman again manages to twist quickly enough so that her blade drives off Djembe's. And yet again Alimah tries to use the parry to start an attack, this time aiming the flat of her blade for the man's shoulder.
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar, but Djembe parries the attack with his Scimitar!
[Djembe(#29535)] Twisting his body again, Djembe manuevers his scimitar in place to take the brunt of the blow, taking a few quick steps to the side as he does so, and swinging low--and shallow-- at Alimah's knee. "What, no mocking reply?" he asks, his own voice full of sarcasm. "The lady loses her edge in the heat of battle!"
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar and mildly wounds her!
[Alimah(#24218)]
Though she tries to hop out of the way, Alimah is not quick enough this time, and Djembe's sword thwacks loudly against the leather armor protecting her legs. No blood is drawn--the blow is not strong enough for that.
"A hit," the Corsair acknowledges. "And here I thought you did not have it in you. How now stands the wager?" she calls with a grin. This is all said, though, as the woman tries to slam her blade sideways into Djembe's flank.
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar and mildly wounds him!
Barjad watches the two blades twine, scowling fiercely. As his gaze flicks from one opponent to the other, it lingers on their eyes. 'Watch the eyes', weaponry teachers so often say ... As Djembe's blade strikes home he hisses slightly, but his arms remain folded across his chest.
Suddenly, however, they jerk and drop to his waist in the region of his belt pouch. "I said, I do not give coin," he growls in Haradaic that is carefully enunciated, though still low-voiced, directed to the robed fellow who is now standing right at his side. Distracted, he misses Alimah's return stroke.
[Djembe(#29535)] As Alimah's scimitar crashes into his side, a painful gasp of air is pushed out of Djembe's lips with a loud -OOF-. "All the more curious that must make your mind," he teases, "to know there are surprises unlookedfor in the one you desire!" He steps to the side again and mirrors Alimah's own attack, aiming the side of his blade at the curves of the woman's waist.
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar and mildly wounds her!
[Alimah(#24218)]
A matching huff of breath is elicited from the woman, but Alimah soffs at the hit and twists to the side, blade trying to hit Djembe's back this time. "Don't flatter yourself," she sneers. "You make far more of your attraction and abilities than you ought. I desire practice with my blade and nothing else. You are a mere sparring partner."
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar and mildly wounds him!
[Djembe(#29535)] "Sparring partner?" Djembe asks incredulously, too distracted by defending his position in the verbal sparring match to do anything about the attack landing on his back. Though no blood is drawn--his armor is too thick for that-- the pirate's son stumbles forward, his back turned to Alimah for the first time in the contest, and he has to place a hand on the dusty ground to maintain his balance.
[Alimah(#24218)]
"Dueling, sparring, call it what you like. If this were a real duel, I would finish you off right now, given that you have lost your balance. But...I won't." Alimah waits, scimitar still held ready, yet she also continues. "Are we through? It seems we are evenly matched or nearly so?"
The robed fellow glances toward Barjad - a glance that is clearly nervous - and murmurs soothingly, "Course, sir. Never said different. Maybe another ti-" The words break off: Barjad's left hand still rests on his belt pouch, but the right is clenched into a fist. "Go. Or there will be different blood on the ground." Surprisingly, he does not draw his scimitar, though in this Square blades are more often than not the means of settling even the most minor dispute.
Perhaps it is the sight of that ugly face, perhaps the would-be gambler just happens to have a guilty conscience .. in any case the man moves off with no more said or done.
His attention freed now, Barjad glances back to the sparring pair. What has he missed?
[Djembe(#29535)] As quickly as he stumbled, Djembe has regained his composure and faced his opponent anew. "Distracted by your unending charm, I'm sure, lady," he explains in a mocking tone. "Let us end this then--the next to make contact takes all!" he suggests, and without waiting for an answer lunges forward, scimitar aimed at Alimah's swordhand once again.
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar and mildly wounds her!
[Alimah(#24218)]
The attack is unexpected and it hits. Though Alimah does not drop her scimitar, Djembe's blade knocks her arm too low for her to swing with it. So she instead uses the pommel of the blade to try to aim a punch at Djembe's groin, sneering low as she does so. "I agree to no such terms."
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Bare Hands, but she misses by a mile.
Djembe steps safely to the side at the last minute, Alimah's blow lost somewhere in the folds of linen the man is clothed in. "Aha!" he exclaims. "Her spirit returns!" continues the pirate's son while he swings the broad side of his weapon at the woman's exposed side.
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar and mildly wounds her!
Barjad winces visibly as Alimah's arm is hit, though at her awkward backhanded punch he snorts, appearing unsurprised that she has missed. "Too heavy," he mutters under his breath. "Use the feet ..." The frown deepens as Djembe lands yet another blow. Perhaps he's lucky not to have taken that bet.
[Alimah(#24218)]
Alimah, it might seem, is angered by Djembe's toying with her this way, for she again does not manage to twist out of the way in time. She does, though, take the blow to her side, wincing a bit at the bruise it likely caused, and she swings her own blade toward Djembe's hip--as in swatting a baby's bottom.
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar and mildly wounds him!
[Djembe(#29535)] A grunt escapes Djembe's lips as Alimah's blade crushes into his hip, and a sneer falls into place on his face, if only for a moment. His feet are planted more firmly this time, and the white-clad man is able to keep his balance. "Don't let my words trouble you too much, lady," he says, the sarcasm in his voice sapping the statement of any sweetness it could have possessed. "Now is not the time to -slip-," he says, emphasizing the last word of the sentence as he lunges toward his opponent, weapon aimed at her opposite shoulder.
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar and mildly wounds her!
[Alimah(#24218)]
"You talk to much, Djembe," Alimah snorts. "The Stonelanders will slice the tongue right out of your mouth if you intend to babble your way through a battle." She does try to twist sideways out of the man's blade, but he still succeeds in hitting a blow that glances off her shoulder. This is no impairment to her next move--she tries to slap the blade at his forward leg as he lunges.
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar and mildly wounds him!
Barjad snorts at the interplay of words. Drawing breath, he calls out to the fighters, slowly but as clearly as he can, "The Stonelanders will die more fast if you are not sore and slow to move. You are same in skill. Is it enough?"
He falls silent then - after all, it is not his challenge to meddle in.
[Djembe(#29535)] The attack connects, and Djembe retreats from it quickly, limping several steps back from the woman and eyeing her carefully as Barjad speaks. "Perhaps our audience is right," he says breathlessly. "I could not be the cause of ruining such soft skin," he continues, amusement creeping back into his voice as he regains his composure once again. Though his scimitar is still raised in the offensive position, he does not move to attack again, and he says no more.
[Alimah(#24218)]
"And just how do you know my skin is soft? You may assume so on the basis that I am a woman, but you do not know for certain. Nor will you ever," Alimah sneers. "For all you know, I could be scarred and toughened from many years of fighting at sea." She gives no answer to either Barjad or Djembe's suggestion about stopping--but she sheaths her weapon once more. "And this time, do not trick me into thinkig our fight is through. If you do that again, I will cut you open for real."
Barjad's little snort of breath at Djembe's words is followed by a raised brow at Alimah's response. "It is enough," he repeats from the sidelines. "There are others to fight. Men say a ship sails soon. Maybe north?" It sounds more question than statement clearly he knows little more.
[Djembe(#29535)] "Rarely have I heard a woman try to convince the one she desires not to explore what her body offers. You are a rare mystery, indeed, Alimah of Farside," Djembe says, sheathing his own weapon and pulling the helmet off of his head, which sets loose an avalanche of sweaty black curls. He tucks the headpiece under one arm and bows ever so slightly at the hips. "You were a pleasurable challenge," he says, eyes gleaming slightly in the torchlight.
Presently, he nods to Barjad. "Are your concerns abated?" asks the white-clad man. "No son or daughter of Umbar died here tonight."
[Alimah(#24218)]
"And that, Djembe, is where you are wrong, for I do not desire you at all. You flatter yourself, but if you wish to hold on to your dreams that women pursue you, far be it from me to stop you," Alimah snorts. "It was, however, a pleasure to duel with you. Perhaps we will repeat it one day soon." She bows, just a bit, then turns and disappears into the darkness of the Square.
Barjad's raised brow does not lower as he looks to Djembe. "Bait?" he repeats, blankly, then sighs and explains in his awkward, nasal Haradaic, "I did wish to watch - and learn. I do not find this," his hand drops briefly to the battered scimitar-hilt that rests against his own hip, "easy. For the watching, I thank you." He gives a brief nod of the head to Djembe, and has another for the disappearing Alimah. He watches her back, his scarred features inscrutable.
[Djembe(#29535)] "Yes, perhaps we will," Djembe answers Alimah gruffly, seemingly ignoring her statement of disinterest. As she makes her way into the shadows of night, the pirate's son turns his attention to Barjad's broken Haradraic. "Bait?" he asks. "What are you talking about? I asked if your fears were put to rest, since none met their end here tonight," he explains with a hint of impatience in his voice.
"But you are welcome for the lesson," he continues now, impatience giving way to pride. "My father taught me the art of the scimitar as his father did to him, and his father before that, and so-on throughout the history of the Sanbanyi family!"
The impatience is likely noted, for Barjad's carefully blank features tense. "It was a good testing," he responds as swiftly as he may - which is not very. "You are two of the same kind with the blade. And there was no large hurt to any." He nods in seeming satisfaction.
As for the rest ... his brows furrow slightly, and at length he comments, "It is good to have .. history. You say your family did serve Seaward?"
Djembe cracks his neck to one side, touching it tenderly as he does so. "No large hurt perhaps, but I expect my body will remember the contest tomorrow," he says, the slightest hint of admiration in his voice as he glances in the direction Alimah disappeared to. Barjad's question brings his attention back to their conversation and he nods his confirmation, adding, "But that path is not for me, as you know."
"Now I'm afraid my path takes me to rest," he continues, and regards Barjad with the shortest nod of his head and departs to the east.
Barjad grunts at Djembe's words, even as he returns the nod with one of his own. "In a life, a man walks many paths," he murmurs as he watches the other depart. Then, and only then, does he himself leave the darkened square, his own path taking him back to Seaward and likely to sleep.
The night settles deadly quiet around the square. An aura of dark foreboding hangs over this place. A huge gallows with sits in the far western edge of the square. The apparatus dominates the square--the nightly prison cleaning has left a body hanging on the rope. In front of the gallows, a tall whipping-post juts upward. The post is rough and scarred from use. You shudder when you envision the goings-on here--you can almost hear the echos of the screams reverberating from the surrounding buildings.
In front of all the gruesome devices of death and torture a series of lines are painted on the ground. Evidently, the area is also used for 'gentlemen's duels' and training for combat.
The stalls and shops around the square are silent for now, closed off, with only the most desperate merchants remaining open to sell their wares to the shadows. A few lit torches remain to remind passers by of the excitement of the day.
The sky is clear and the stars shines brightly. The midnight spring air is hot and dry around you.
Obvious exits:
Herb Shop, Mermaid's Arms, Marketplace, and East
[+TIME] Middle-earth time is:
Midnight on Sterday, Day 10 of March.
Execute the +TIMEFRAME command for year information.
Real time is: 14:06:31 MDT on Mon Jun 15 2009.
IC year: 3047
Night has fallen and the Square is empty except for a few remaining merchants, most of whom are packing up their goods. In the lined area of the square, though, a woman waits, helmet under one arm, leather arm protecting her body. A scimitar hangs from her hip, sheathed.
[Djembe(#29535)] "I see my message found its way to you," announces a hoarse voice from somewhere in the dark, heralding the approach of a flourish of white robes. Slow, deliberate steps bring the figure out of the shadows of night until the light from a nearby torch falls across the man's hooded countenance and reveals the bushy eyebrows and dark hair of Djembe Sanbanyi.
"It seems no time other than the evening will have us," he says presently, stopping a few feet short of the woman in his approach. The tone of amusement in his voice contrasts sharply with its gruff nature as he adds, "Or perhaps, we have no other time."
[Alimah(#24218)]
"Day, night. It matters not to me," Alimah shrugs, turning to face Djembe. "If the evening suits you better, all the same." She pulls on her helmet, still watchign the man.
Barjad lingers by one of those few remaining stalls, a cobbler's by the look of it, seemingly attempting to dicker over something. A few coins change hands before he tucks something away into his belt-pouch. At the sight of the female loiterer his brows draw down in a frown and he walks that way, ignoring the gentle creak of the gibbet-rope as he passes.
At Djembe's sudden appearance, that frown deepens. "This night, you spill blood not ale?" comes the soft, nasal query as he nears the pair.
[Djembe(#29535)] A mane of black curls escapes the hood of Djembe's robes as he pushes it back, only to be trapped again moments later as he places his own helmet onto his head. "Your spirit never fails me," he says to Alimah, a hint of condescention in his voice. The pirate's son then turns his attention to Barjad and acknowledges the man with a nod. "Only a few drops," he answers.
"I think we both have some to spare."
[Alimah(#24218)]
Alimah, in her turn, snorts--first at Djembe, then at Barjad. "And this shocks you?" she asks, though the question is not clearly addressed to either of the men. She draws her scimitar, holding the blade up to check its edge. "I challenged the man," she continues, clearly to Barjad. "He is here to meet that challenge. But only a little blood will be spilled, rest assured. There are Stonelanders to slay."
Barjad lets out a snorted breath at the two answers. "When will 'some' be had? Second blood? Third? A .. a big hurt will win nothing, and there are Stonelanders to fight." The right side of his mouth pulls back at Alimah's words. Stubbornly, then, he offers - if one could call it that, "I will watch, and see Umbar loses not a fighter."
[Djembe(#29535)] "Only as much as necessary," is Djembe's addition to Alimah's statement, and he directs it at Barjad before returning his eyes and his attentions to the woman. "As I said once before, I could hardly see fit to bring an end to such an interesting spirit," he says with the faintest glimmer of a smirk twisting his lips for only a second before drawing his own scimitar from its sheath with a loud -SHINK-. He turns and takes a few steps away before turning back to the pair and eyeing them expectantly.
[Alimah(#24218)]
"Admit the truth, Djembe Sanbanyi. You are puzzled and intrigued by me. You wish to know more about me or at least to possess me, if nothing else. You want to know where I get the nerve to say the things I do and why I am so curious about you." Alimah grins as she says this, and begins circling in a low crouch, her blade held out parallel to the ground. "One way or another, whatever it is, something has drawn you out here at midnight to have a duel with me."
"I will let you make the first stroke."
Djembe's smirk is met by a grunt from Barjad as he steps back, out of the way, arms folding across his chest. Does his frown deepen as Alimah speaks, the soft words carrying in the quiet square? His gaze flicks from one bladewielder to the other, and when it rests on Djembe it is wary.
One or two passers-by linger, curious the merchants, however, continue to pack up and go on their way, ignoring what in this place is almost a nightly ritual. Umbar is, after all, not short of blood.
[Djembe(#29535)] "Or perhaps the delusions of an infatuated mind make you hope so," Djembe retorts, playfulness working against his gruff voice, making the statement come out rather awkwardly. He circles too, legs bent at the knees, one hand out for balance, the other in possession of his blade. When Alimah suggests he attack first, he slowly shakes his head and adds, "Don't let that spirit fail you now--you come and find what your challenge has bought you."
[Alimah(#24218)]
"Oh, I am deluded all right," Alimah sneers, continuing her slow circle. She smiles at the man--and as Djembe puts out a hand for balance, the flat of her sword blade strikes out swiftly toward it.
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar and mildly wounds him!
Djembe snatches his hand back as the blade licks it, a few drops of blood tumbling onto the ground as he does so. A sound not unlike a short laugh escapes his lips, cut off prematurely when he growls, "A lucky strike, lady. Now see where it's got you!" The man lunges forward suddenly, the blade of his scimitar aimed at Alimah's swordhand.
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar, but Alimah parries the attack with her Scimitar!
The corner of Barjad's mouth twitches slightly at Djembe's offer and the result arising from it. Amber eyes brighten a little as he continues to watch the pair, and Alimah in particular.
His interest is noted. A rough, Haradaic voice grates in his ear, "Nice, innit? See you've an interest in the gal - care to put money on it? A silver she floors him within three strokes." The owner of the voice is half-hid in voluminous robes, but his wheedling tone is not pleasant on the ear. Nor, for that matter, is the scent that accompanies him on the delicate nose.
[Alimah(#24218)]
With a laugh, Alimah turns quickly to her right, her blade coming up to meet Djembe's with a clash. She follow through on this stroke, using the momentum to try to hit Djembe on his hip, careful to use the flat of her blade as she does so.
"Three silver?! Is that all I am worth?!" she calls out indignantly.
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar, but Djembe parries the attack with his Scimitar!
[Djembe(#29535)] Seemingly unaware of the game of odds generated regarding his fate, Djembe swiftly moves his blade between Alimah's and his own hip, arriving only barely in time to stop the attack. With a flex of his body at the waist, he pushes her scimitar away and pushes forward, the tip of his blade carefully at his opponent's opposite shoulder. "Your attentions should not be elsewhere, lady!" he cries as he does so. "Or you might find you have greater concerns than a few coins!"
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar, but Alimah parries the attack with her Scimitar!
Barjad, without turning, responds to the would-be gambler in a nasal hiss, "I do not give money on the .. the will of the Power. The thing that is, is." He shakes his head, for all that he seems to be looking at a safe bet. Alimah's words bring a bark of laughter, and he calls out more loudly, "Your price .. worth? .. is higher than coin." The right side of his mouth pulls back a little further as he watches the seemingly even match.
The fellow who had offered the money, on the other hand, protests (still in a wheedling voice), "Lady, I am but a poor man ..." He chuckles, overloudly, at Djembe's jibe.
[Azradi(#20135)]
At the far end of the square, a tall figure stands watching the duel - shrouded in shadows and silence.
[Alimah(#24218)]
Another clash of steel on steel as the woman again manages to twist quickly enough so that her blade drives off Djembe's. And yet again Alimah tries to use the parry to start an attack, this time aiming the flat of her blade for the man's shoulder.
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar, but Djembe parries the attack with his Scimitar!
[Djembe(#29535)] Twisting his body again, Djembe manuevers his scimitar in place to take the brunt of the blow, taking a few quick steps to the side as he does so, and swinging low--and shallow-- at Alimah's knee. "What, no mocking reply?" he asks, his own voice full of sarcasm. "The lady loses her edge in the heat of battle!"
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar and mildly wounds her!
[Alimah(#24218)]
Though she tries to hop out of the way, Alimah is not quick enough this time, and Djembe's sword thwacks loudly against the leather armor protecting her legs. No blood is drawn--the blow is not strong enough for that.
"A hit," the Corsair acknowledges. "And here I thought you did not have it in you. How now stands the wager?" she calls with a grin. This is all said, though, as the woman tries to slam her blade sideways into Djembe's flank.
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar and mildly wounds him!
Barjad watches the two blades twine, scowling fiercely. As his gaze flicks from one opponent to the other, it lingers on their eyes. 'Watch the eyes', weaponry teachers so often say ... As Djembe's blade strikes home he hisses slightly, but his arms remain folded across his chest.
Suddenly, however, they jerk and drop to his waist in the region of his belt pouch. "I said, I do not give coin," he growls in Haradaic that is carefully enunciated, though still low-voiced, directed to the robed fellow who is now standing right at his side. Distracted, he misses Alimah's return stroke.
[Djembe(#29535)] As Alimah's scimitar crashes into his side, a painful gasp of air is pushed out of Djembe's lips with a loud -OOF-. "All the more curious that must make your mind," he teases, "to know there are surprises unlookedfor in the one you desire!" He steps to the side again and mirrors Alimah's own attack, aiming the side of his blade at the curves of the woman's waist.
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar and mildly wounds her!
[Alimah(#24218)]
A matching huff of breath is elicited from the woman, but Alimah soffs at the hit and twists to the side, blade trying to hit Djembe's back this time. "Don't flatter yourself," she sneers. "You make far more of your attraction and abilities than you ought. I desire practice with my blade and nothing else. You are a mere sparring partner."
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar and mildly wounds him!
[Djembe(#29535)] "Sparring partner?" Djembe asks incredulously, too distracted by defending his position in the verbal sparring match to do anything about the attack landing on his back. Though no blood is drawn--his armor is too thick for that-- the pirate's son stumbles forward, his back turned to Alimah for the first time in the contest, and he has to place a hand on the dusty ground to maintain his balance.
[Alimah(#24218)]
"Dueling, sparring, call it what you like. If this were a real duel, I would finish you off right now, given that you have lost your balance. But...I won't." Alimah waits, scimitar still held ready, yet she also continues. "Are we through? It seems we are evenly matched or nearly so?"
The robed fellow glances toward Barjad - a glance that is clearly nervous - and murmurs soothingly, "Course, sir. Never said different. Maybe another ti-" The words break off: Barjad's left hand still rests on his belt pouch, but the right is clenched into a fist. "Go. Or there will be different blood on the ground." Surprisingly, he does not draw his scimitar, though in this Square blades are more often than not the means of settling even the most minor dispute.
Perhaps it is the sight of that ugly face, perhaps the would-be gambler just happens to have a guilty conscience .. in any case the man moves off with no more said or done.
His attention freed now, Barjad glances back to the sparring pair. What has he missed?
[Djembe(#29535)] As quickly as he stumbled, Djembe has regained his composure and faced his opponent anew. "Distracted by your unending charm, I'm sure, lady," he explains in a mocking tone. "Let us end this then--the next to make contact takes all!" he suggests, and without waiting for an answer lunges forward, scimitar aimed at Alimah's swordhand once again.
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar and mildly wounds her!
[Alimah(#24218)]
The attack is unexpected and it hits. Though Alimah does not drop her scimitar, Djembe's blade knocks her arm too low for her to swing with it. So she instead uses the pommel of the blade to try to aim a punch at Djembe's groin, sneering low as she does so. "I agree to no such terms."
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Bare Hands, but she misses by a mile.
Djembe steps safely to the side at the last minute, Alimah's blow lost somewhere in the folds of linen the man is clothed in. "Aha!" he exclaims. "Her spirit returns!" continues the pirate's son while he swings the broad side of his weapon at the woman's exposed side.
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar and mildly wounds her!
Barjad winces visibly as Alimah's arm is hit, though at her awkward backhanded punch he snorts, appearing unsurprised that she has missed. "Too heavy," he mutters under his breath. "Use the feet ..." The frown deepens as Djembe lands yet another blow. Perhaps he's lucky not to have taken that bet.
[Alimah(#24218)]
Alimah, it might seem, is angered by Djembe's toying with her this way, for she again does not manage to twist out of the way in time. She does, though, take the blow to her side, wincing a bit at the bruise it likely caused, and she swings her own blade toward Djembe's hip--as in swatting a baby's bottom.
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar and mildly wounds him!
[Djembe(#29535)] A grunt escapes Djembe's lips as Alimah's blade crushes into his hip, and a sneer falls into place on his face, if only for a moment. His feet are planted more firmly this time, and the white-clad man is able to keep his balance. "Don't let my words trouble you too much, lady," he says, the sarcasm in his voice sapping the statement of any sweetness it could have possessed. "Now is not the time to -slip-," he says, emphasizing the last word of the sentence as he lunges toward his opponent, weapon aimed at her opposite shoulder.
Djembe attacks Alimah with his Scimitar and mildly wounds her!
[Alimah(#24218)]
"You talk to much, Djembe," Alimah snorts. "The Stonelanders will slice the tongue right out of your mouth if you intend to babble your way through a battle." She does try to twist sideways out of the man's blade, but he still succeeds in hitting a blow that glances off her shoulder. This is no impairment to her next move--she tries to slap the blade at his forward leg as he lunges.
Alimah attacks Djembe with her Scimitar and mildly wounds him!
Barjad snorts at the interplay of words. Drawing breath, he calls out to the fighters, slowly but as clearly as he can, "The Stonelanders will die more fast if you are not sore and slow to move. You are same in skill. Is it enough?"
He falls silent then - after all, it is not his challenge to meddle in.
[Djembe(#29535)] The attack connects, and Djembe retreats from it quickly, limping several steps back from the woman and eyeing her carefully as Barjad speaks. "Perhaps our audience is right," he says breathlessly. "I could not be the cause of ruining such soft skin," he continues, amusement creeping back into his voice as he regains his composure once again. Though his scimitar is still raised in the offensive position, he does not move to attack again, and he says no more.
[Alimah(#24218)]
"And just how do you know my skin is soft? You may assume so on the basis that I am a woman, but you do not know for certain. Nor will you ever," Alimah sneers. "For all you know, I could be scarred and toughened from many years of fighting at sea." She gives no answer to either Barjad or Djembe's suggestion about stopping--but she sheaths her weapon once more. "And this time, do not trick me into thinkig our fight is through. If you do that again, I will cut you open for real."
Barjad's little snort of breath at Djembe's words is followed by a raised brow at Alimah's response. "It is enough," he repeats from the sidelines. "There are others to fight. Men say a ship sails soon. Maybe north?" It sounds more question than statement clearly he knows little more.
[Djembe(#29535)] "Rarely have I heard a woman try to convince the one she desires not to explore what her body offers. You are a rare mystery, indeed, Alimah of Farside," Djembe says, sheathing his own weapon and pulling the helmet off of his head, which sets loose an avalanche of sweaty black curls. He tucks the headpiece under one arm and bows ever so slightly at the hips. "You were a pleasurable challenge," he says, eyes gleaming slightly in the torchlight.
Presently, he nods to Barjad. "Are your concerns abated?" asks the white-clad man. "No son or daughter of Umbar died here tonight."
[Alimah(#24218)]
"And that, Djembe, is where you are wrong, for I do not desire you at all. You flatter yourself, but if you wish to hold on to your dreams that women pursue you, far be it from me to stop you," Alimah snorts. "It was, however, a pleasure to duel with you. Perhaps we will repeat it one day soon." She bows, just a bit, then turns and disappears into the darkness of the Square.
Barjad's raised brow does not lower as he looks to Djembe. "Bait?" he repeats, blankly, then sighs and explains in his awkward, nasal Haradaic, "I did wish to watch - and learn. I do not find this," his hand drops briefly to the battered scimitar-hilt that rests against his own hip, "easy. For the watching, I thank you." He gives a brief nod of the head to Djembe, and has another for the disappearing Alimah. He watches her back, his scarred features inscrutable.
[Djembe(#29535)] "Yes, perhaps we will," Djembe answers Alimah gruffly, seemingly ignoring her statement of disinterest. As she makes her way into the shadows of night, the pirate's son turns his attention to Barjad's broken Haradraic. "Bait?" he asks. "What are you talking about? I asked if your fears were put to rest, since none met their end here tonight," he explains with a hint of impatience in his voice.
"But you are welcome for the lesson," he continues now, impatience giving way to pride. "My father taught me the art of the scimitar as his father did to him, and his father before that, and so-on throughout the history of the Sanbanyi family!"
The impatience is likely noted, for Barjad's carefully blank features tense. "It was a good testing," he responds as swiftly as he may - which is not very. "You are two of the same kind with the blade. And there was no large hurt to any." He nods in seeming satisfaction.
As for the rest ... his brows furrow slightly, and at length he comments, "It is good to have .. history. You say your family did serve Seaward?"
Djembe cracks his neck to one side, touching it tenderly as he does so. "No large hurt perhaps, but I expect my body will remember the contest tomorrow," he says, the slightest hint of admiration in his voice as he glances in the direction Alimah disappeared to. Barjad's question brings his attention back to their conversation and he nods his confirmation, adding, "But that path is not for me, as you know."
"Now I'm afraid my path takes me to rest," he continues, and regards Barjad with the shortest nod of his head and departs to the east.
Barjad grunts at Djembe's words, even as he returns the nod with one of his own. "In a life, a man walks many paths," he murmurs as he watches the other depart. Then, and only then, does he himself leave the darkened square, his own path taking him back to Seaward and likely to sleep.
Players: Alimah, Djembe, Barjad
Located in: Haradrim
