Long Arm of the Harpy

Long Arm of the Harpy
Date of Scene:	23 November 2012
Location:	Dalamascan Sands
Synopsis:	Morrighan has assigned Kaydin to arrest Avira. Of course, Avira violently resists arrest. Interference from the Ember Knight Shadow Lord and VALKYRI member Valencia ensues.
Cast of Characters:	Katyna, Avira, Kaydin, Valencia

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Avira has posed:
Another sunny day in Dalamasca. The rainy season has yet to start. It's late afternoon and the sun has already traced its path halfway across the clear sky. To the uninitiated, the heat of the desert is unbarable.

For those asking around, Avira isn't that hard to find. Word in Lowtown was she went out to the nearby desert to hunt a mark. They would be sort of correct.

Avira is not hunting right now. Instead, she sits atop a rocky outcropping, watching the creatures of the desert. Her gaze mostly remains on the gigantic dinosaur roaming the area.

Kaydin has posed:
"Atleast I wont have to fight the group you hang about with." Kaydin says as he approaches, full metal armor worn as he holds his black sword in his hand. "Avira, I have been sent by Morrighan." He says as he raises his sword towards her, waiting for her response.

Avira has posed:
"...excuse me?" Avira looks over her shoulder, staring at the familiar dark knight. She really should have heard him coming, come to think of it. Maybe her focus on connecting with the local wildlife was just that intense.

It's not unnoticed that his sword is already out. She abruptly stands at the name mentioned, "Oh have you know, what does that harpy want?" Her right hand reaches back, resting upon the hilt of her own weapon.

Katyna has posed:
Katyna, or rather 'Ember', as she is known in this visage, travels through the desert, having openned a portal a ways back, but now she's wondering if she's in the wrong desert altogether. Certainly those landmarks werent there before. Still..When she spies the two familiar figures up ahead, she grins, pulling her black cloak more tightly about her shoulders.

Avira had caught her interest before, and she is curious to determine if shes one of the princesses of pure hearts..Or just a strong hero. As for the other, she's uncertain what to think about him just yet..

For now, dressed in her black armour and helmet, she has the appearance of the heartless knight Ember, although she does little to draw attention to herself, simply listening from behind a nearby rock. For now..

Kaydin has posed:
"Well she wants to have you locked up in Baron's dungeon so she may have her way with you. While I suggested that we had better things to do, she happened to remind me she is my superior and she ordered me to retrieve you since I had nothing better to do" Kaydin says as he watches her hand and lowers his sword. "So I give you two choices. Come peacefully, or I may have to try and bring you forcibly. Her exact words were to bring the little Lepruchan to her."

Avira has posed:
Avira shudders at the thought. "Surely you jest. Now I know I can make an impression but..."

Avira flashes back to the fight at Balamb Gardens. Specifically, to the point where Avira sunk an angry fist into the elf's face. "Oh, and here I thought you were planning a Manhattan invasion, surely that is far more important than retrieving-well, okay, let's cut to the chase."

Avira slides the Spine out of its sheath and points it at Kaydin. "I will not come with you."

Katyna has posed:
What are they up to? Ember continues to listen, still hiding behind that rock. Hmm, she's never met the dark knight before, but the way he's dressed and how he speaks makes it seem like he may be with the heartless. As for Avira, she's rather interested in seeing what she is capable of doing herself. For now, Ember remains hidden and continues to listen. Perhaps an opportune moment will present it self later.

Kaydin has posed:
"Lets just say I had free time. Plus the ability to use the corridors of darkness makes me able to move about quickly." Kaydin says as he looks to the weapon she had and watches it intensely. "Are you sure of your decision?" He asks as his body begins to radiate darkness, even in the bright desert sun the area about the knight darkened.

Avira has posed:
"/Dark knights/." Avira scowls a little. The change is immediate in her stance and her muscles quickly become tense, which is easy to observe due to her clothing. "I am extremely sure of my decision and I caution against you pursuing this directive any further." Though she does seem slightly intimidated by the sudden darkness, she is holding her ground. "I will not submit myself to that old hag's imprisonment."

Kaydin will see a sort of fire in her eyes as she stares the dark knight down. "Am I clear?"

Valencia has posed:
Speeding through the desert, kicking up sand as she skims the surface of the dunes is Valencia. She heard that Avira was going to hunt a mark, and it never hurts to have your friends along right? However, upon seeing Kaydin in fron of her with his sword drawn she skids to a stop next to Avira and says, "Ok ok ok, slow down. Let's not start anything that doesn't have to start. Is this about his whole dark knight thing he's got going on?.."

Katyna has posed:
Hmmm, this should be fun to watch! Ember continues to hide and eavesdrop on the conversation. But right now, she is reluctant to step in. How dishonorable it would be, if she were to fight Avira when she's already facing against Kaydin?

She continues to crouch down and listen, curious to know what they plan to do with Avira..

Kaydin has posed:
"I am afraid I cannot follow your advice. We are at an impasse. One way to end it." He says as he leaps with incredibly speed toward her, sending in a quick stab with a slash downward to try and cut through her defenses before sending another quick stab. His speed was unbelievable for one who wore heavy armor. "I have orders to take Avira to Baron." He explains to Valencia.

Avira has posed:
A frown graces her face. "So much for negotiatio-" Avira is, quite literally, caught off guard as this man pounces upon her with speed he had no business in having given that heavy armor of his. She actually manages to parry the first stab away, but the follow-up slash cleaves down into her breastplate.

A swear escapes her and she tries to slip out of the final blow, but even that doesn't seem to help evade his reach.

"No!" she calls out, backing up from the dark knight as Valencia arrives, "This clown is trying to arrest me!" Scowling, she steps sideways, trying to flank him before she counters with a lunge of her own, followed by an upwards slash. The descent is used as well, though Avira exchanges a one-handed grip for a two-handed one.

Katyna has posed:
Annd, there is Valencia? Ember's eyes narrow. She should have known. Afterall, she's one of the VALKYRI girls too! she smirks, rising slowly from her hiding place. This should be fun!

"You'd better step back. This is their fight. Dont interfere!" She calls out to Valencia. She glances curiously over at Kaydin. "You're with Baron? Then I guess we're allies. Why does Baron want that girl?"

Valencia has posed:
Glaring at Ember, Valencia says, "And let him take her? Come now, as though I'm that apathetic." as she withdraws her rapier and holds it up saying, "Starlight, heed my call!" as a helix of starlight appears around it and gathers on the tip as the ball flies into the sky before Valencia says, "Now fall!" as it breaks into several shards that fly towards Kaydin.

Katyna has posed:
"Hey now, that's hardly fair, two against one! How 'bout you take me on for size!" Ember's blood red eyes glint evilly in the moonlight as she suddenly rushes at Valencia from behind, attempting to slash at her three times with her flaming sword.

Kaydin has posed:
Kaydin manages to evade Avira's attacks only to leap and try to avoid Valencia's attacks to be blasted back from the air. He slashes at the air twice, and black energy blasts fly for Avira before he grabs the chain on the pommel of his sword and spins it, before hurling the weapon at Avira.

Avira has posed:
"Hah, nice one Valencia!" Avira manages to call out as she tries to edge around behind Kaydin, mostly to find a better angle of attack. Doesn't seem to be helping, though, as her opponent leaps into the air and blasts her with dark waves.

This is the first time she's been hit with such an attack and the amount of pain it inflicts is surprising. Angantyr didn't even do thsi to her! "Ugh!" she cries out before the sword buries itself into her shoulder. To make matters worse, a fourth person has arrived, proclaiming to be an ally of Baron.

Gritting her teeth, Avira grabs onto the handle of the weapon Kaydin just flung at her and gives it a yank, trying to pull him down to her level. She's surprisingly strong for someone so tiny, though there could be something else in play here.

Avira swings the Spine down rapidly in two wide strokes. As she does, the blade takes on a silvery sheen before a sharp projected force spreads out from where she had swung.

Valencia has posed:
As Ember strikes at Valencia's back, she tries to skate away but the element of surprise is too great an advantage and she takes the blows square in the back with a cry of surprise. Looking back over towards ember, Valencia pauses as she says, "...Do I know you?" then shakes her head and says, "Well, it hardly matters. You seem to like fire... What about -this-?" as she floats in the air for a moment before slamming into the ground as several geysers of fire erupts from the ground in a giant explosion!

Katyna has posed:
Ember smirks, shaking her head, "Heh, I doubt it, Never met you before in my life. But I'm afraid I'll have to put you out of action now, unless you choose to surrender!"

Then Valencia suddenly unleashes geysers of flame, but Ember seems to barely miss a beat, waving it away with her sword and a short laugh, "Heh, dont you know, you cant fight fire with fire? You'll only make me stronger!"

Her sword flares more brightly now as she rushes at Valencia, slashing her sword down in the ground, unleashing a brilliant flash of blue-white light that explodes from her sword and rushes at Val. This is followed by another horizontal slash that releases a ring of flames at the girl.

Kaydin has posed:
Kaydin gets pulled down and slashed. He then pulls the chain to pull his sword back and moves in, sending two quick strikes for her and raises his sword to try and cleave through her defenses once more, grunting as he watches her.

Avira has posed:
Avira releases her grasp on his weapon when he pulls back and switches into a defensive position as he moves in. Unfortunately, his first two strikes are too fast for her to evade and the dark-empowered weapon continues to batter her. The final strike, however, meets the Spine, held perpendicular to stop the blade.

The huntress glowers up at him before pushing off the blade and countering with a low slash. It isn't just any slash-blue light shoots up the length of the Spine, imbuing the weapon with ice magic. Aggressively, she presses against him with two additional ice-filled blows.

Kaydin seems to have Avira at a disadvantage but it's not stopping her. With each new cut or bruise, the harder she fights.

Kaydin has posed:
Kaydin tries to defend against the attacks but he is still hit and driven back. He then grunts as he would unravel more of the chain off the weapon and spin it once more, leaping into the air as he spins it, the weapon becoming more of a black blur as he then hurls it at her and if it either hits or misses, he pulls the chain back, spinning once more to a black blur before sending it at her from a different direction, as if trying to keep her out of melee range as he sends it once more at her.

Valencia has posed:
The flaming slashes bite into valencia as she falls back a bit from the impact. Standing up, she dusts herself off and says, "Congratulations. This is the second time I've had to use this spell." before zodiacal symbols appear around her as she says, "...Destiny lies in my hands." Then, the final symbol appears and she says, "GALAXY STOP!" as a massive wave flies out from her in all directions, freezing all enemies it touches.

Avira has posed:
Much to Avira's surprise, Kaydin backs off after her icy blows. Given that she was struck with his extended weapon moments before, she is half expecting his suddenly earned distance to be used with the chain.

As her assumptions prove correct, Avira is more ready to defend against the hurled blade, smacking it out of the air as it nears her with each throw.

Without warning, she does something risky and stabs her weapon point-down into the sand. Her hands spread, miming the drawing of a bow. Where an arrow would be, a thin shaft of ice appears. Much like a real arrow, it's fired at Kaydin. Avira repeats this two additional times.

Katyna has posed:
Ember smirks beneath her helmet. "Heh, you'll need more than that to defeat me!" She sees the spell coming and again dodges out of the way, countering with a quick slash of her sword. "Come on, I know you can do better than that! Give it all you've got!" She actually pauses a moment, leaving herself wide open as she focuses inward, empowering herself with a defensive spell..

Kaydin has posed:
Kaydin dodged each arrow as it flew for him, and as the last arrow flies for him, he just tilts his helmeted head as the arrow misses completely and he looks to the woman. He then radiates a massive amount of dark power, rewrapping the chain back to his arm as he catches the magical wave with his sword, and slashes, sending a blast of dark energy for the elf before turning his head back to Avira.

"My anger, Pain, and Sadness...." He sais as he seems to completely vanish with a small burst of darkness and he reappears close to avira and thrusts his sword to try and stab the woman. "...Shall be your loss."

Kaydin has posed:
Kaydin dodged each arrow as it flew for him, and as the last arrow flies for him, he just tilts his helmeted head as the arrow misses completely and he looks to the woman. He then radiates a massive amount of dark power, rewrapping the chain back to his arm as he catches the magical wave with his sword, and slashes, sending a blast of dark energy for the sorceress before turning his head back to Avira.

"My anger, Pain, and Sadness...." He sais as he seems to completely vanish with a small burst of darkness and he reappears close to avira and thrusts his sword to try and stab the woman. "...Shall be your loss."

Avira has posed:
As much as Avira hates to admit it, that last dodge was...kind of badass.

Valencia tries to help, she really does, but the Dark Knight hunting her seems to just discard her magic as if he was deflecting a sword. Scowling, Avira pulls her weapon out of the sand and charges. Kaydin disappears before she reaches him, only for him to appear at her side and stab her in the back with a darkness-charged sword.

Avira cries out in pain and pulls herself away from him, whirling to face him. A hand reaches behind her to press awkwardly against the wound, healing magic flowing into it. "...you'll have to do more than that..." Avira says with quiet conviction.

Kaydin has posed:
"I will admit you possess impressive willpower. Given training you may have been able to become a dark knight." Kaydin says as he pulls his sword back. His sword glows with intense darkness as he tries to send an underhanded strike with his sword, slashing upwards with an attempt to throw her into the air before once more unraveling that chain to spin it and hurl the sword at her, the sword pulled back, spun once more before hurled at her once more.

Valencia has posed:
Upon hearing the comment about Avira becoming a dark knigt, Valencia seems to change in expression a bit as she looks strangely calm and says, "I'm sorry, but that's simply impossible. I hardly think it's in her nature to accept darkness so easily as you have." before she gestures as a scorpion-tailed spider automaton bursts out of the sand. "Now, please retreat." then pauses before she says, "No?.. Alright then. Goodbye." as the spider fires some shots at Kaydin before gravity magic appears around her hands and she says, "...Gone in a second." as she casts a ball of gravity into the air above kaydin as it compresses into a small black hole and she says, "Ultimate destruction!" hoping to knock kaydin into it with the explosion from the shots.

Avira has posed:
"It's possible." Avira says breathlessly. Seems she's pushing herself really hard to keep up. "But that's a path I never would have taken. That dark power is too dangerous for me." She no longer seems to be recoiling from the darkness emitted by his sword.

His upward strike is blocked, but it still sends her flying from the sheer strength behind it. Even while airborne, she manages to deflect both blows of the thrown weapon with the Spine.

Falling onto her back, she starts to pick herself up when she notices something moving around nearby. Familiar shapes...her eyes widen and she calls out to them. "Help me!"

The Dalamascan sands are full of desert wolves with their tan and red fur. A small pack of three was a common sight in these parts. They're often aggressive towards travelers that venture too close. The three that come charging over the dunes had not been close enough...curiously, they seem to only be interested in attacking Kaydin!

Avira pushes herself up to her feet and charges while he's distracted, the Spine flying out in a flurry of fast strikes. All the while, that faint shimmery sheen has returned, becoming bright for a brief few seconds during the final upward blow. That blow mirrors the one Kaydin performed on her moments before, aiming to knock him up in the air.

Katyna has posed:
Ember smiles, glancing over at Kaydin and nods. "You have a good eye. I've seen her in battle before. Yeah, she'd make a good dark knight. Is that why you want to capture her then?"

She chuckles, but as Valencia focuses her attention back on Kaydin, she shakes her head, clicking her tongue admoninishingly. "Now now, dont let your mind wander.." Still, she is impressed by the girl's showy magic. But will it be enough to defeat Kaydin?

She rushes at the girl again, unleashing blasts of blue white flames from her sword as she attempts to get her attention. "Hey, eyes on me!"

Kaydin has posed:
Kaydin is hit and pulled into the blackhole and thrown into the ground with an explosion. His armor is cracked and helmet mostly destroyed. However he stands, using his sword to stand before he notices the wolves, weaving between the animals and when avira comes it looks like a flurry of evasions, pieces of his armor falling off as the armor is hit but he isnt, actually dodging the three wolves and avira before he leaps up into the air. he then grips his sword tightly as he focuses once more. Like earlier, his entire body seemed to flow with darkness as the sky where he was flying up into began to darken as his sword even grows in dark power. "Darkness take you." He says as he swings his sword down and as he slashes, it seems the knight erupts a MASSIVE blast of darkness which flies for both Valencia and Avira and the wolves, infact it would take a miracle to avoid the massive flood of black energy.

Valencia has posed:
Valencia speeds off away from the incoming blast of darkness, attempting to reach Avira and get them both out before they're caught. However, it's a bit too late for her as the blast descends on her and she flies away and over onto the sand wih a cry of surprise and pain before she skids and lies there, tatters of her otherwise in very good condition clothes flapping in the wind.

Avira has posed:
This guy was unreal! Five on one and he was still dodging every blow! She lets out a noise of frustration before stabbing out at him one final time. Kaydin floats upwards, far out of range of her blow.

For the first time during the fight, there seems to be a look of terror on her face as the blast of darkness descends upon her and Valencia. Where her ally might have been blasted away, Avira endures.

She looks like hell afterwards, breathing hard. "Valencia...?" she calls out, looking over her shoulder. In her way, she sees the scattered bodies of wolves, one still whimpering in pain. Beyond that, she sees the prone form of her fellow VALKYRI. "Valencia!"

Avira whips back, glaring at Kaydin, and swings the Spine upwards, unleashing a spinning, icy crescent sailing upwards at the floating dark knight. Following that is a pretty standard ice spell.

But following that is a progressively stronger ice spell, fueled by the urgency of fighting this guy off to defend her friend.

Kaydin has posed:
Kaydin falls to the ground and as the blasts come for him, he grunts as he tries to flip and weave about the spells, each spell knocking off more of his armor until all that is left is him in his black tunic and pants, the garb torn and bloody and the extent of his wounds could be seen. The fact he was still upright seemed to express that his will to endure was as strong as hers as he hits the sands standing upright. He pants heavily as he shakes his head, trying to see straight. He pants heavily as his body radiates more darkness once more as he looks to her, and vanishes, appearing before her to try and run her through with that sword of his again.

Avira has posed:
Avira glares back, clearly angry over her wounded friend. But unlike a Dark Knight, her anger does nothing to improve her attacks or accuracy. "Damn you." she says through gritted teeth. "Still you persist. I will not go!" It feels good to know that his armor has been obliterated during the course of fighting her. At least she could make him pay some price.

He vanishes and this time, Avira is ready. That sword stabs for her, but rather than running her through, Avira manages to slip out of the way, his sword tearing open a wound through the remains of her breastplate. It's a pretty bad wound.

Yet she manages to remain standing via an impressive display of willpower. She wastes no time in striking back at him, lunging at his side to jab with the Spine. Ice magic flares to life after the impact, worsening the potential wound she inflicts.

Kaydin has posed:
Kaydin pants as he watches her. Despite her obviously looking angry, he looks detached, no emotion registers to his face as he leaps into the air as she lunges, grunting as blood drips from his body as he leaps over her sword and her, turning in mid air to look down at her. He moved much like a dragoon with his leaping and dodging but he didnt have any of their attacks. He raises his sword and swings it hard, sending a black blast of energy down at her, not as large as the last which perhaps means the knight was reaching his limits. As he slashed, he lets go of the sword to spin it once more, it taking a bit of effort but before long it became a spinning black blur as he hurls it down at her hard before pulling it back, spinning it and doing it once more, blood flowing from his wounds to drip to the sands below.

Avira has posed:
Avira darts beneath him as he leaps up, her serrated blade meeting nothing but air. She's quick to look upwards and sees him lift that sword again, recognizing the incoming attack as the horrifying blast from earlier. It's because it was not nearly as large that she's able to dodge roll out of the way.

She keeps rolling, his sword sticking in the sand right where she just was on both occasions, missing entirely. Pulling herself up to her feet, Avira turns from him and runs to her fallen friend. She's a lot slower than before, having obviously reached her limit yet persisted due to her own willpower.

She tries to pull Valencia up and drape her arm over her shoulders. That same blue glow returns as she tries to heal both herself and the wounded mage. All the while, she's clearly trying to flee.

Kaydin has posed:
Kaydin lands on the ground and despite being slowed by his body wanting to stop, still he moves on, moving after the woman. He rewraps the sword along his arm, and swings it once to send a blast of energy at her before spinning the weapon once more, hurling the sword at her to try and stab her with it before pulling it back and swinging it again and hurls it once more.

Avira has posed:
Avira looks over her shoulder and swears, seeing Kaydin still following. She tries to move faster, but trying to drag Valencia along too slows her down far too much. Upon looking back a second time, she sees a mass of darkness flying at her. It strike her hard enough that she breaks away from the unconscious Valencia and flies forward, landing face-first against a dune.

"Noooo..." weakly, she tries to crawl away as her vision starts to darken.

Kaydin has posed:
Kaydin approaches the woman more slowly as she falls and he picks up Valencia with one arm, and moves to Avira. He waits for her to become limp before picking her up with the other arm, both women slung over his shoulders, sword sheathed as he approached as he walked towards Rabanastre.