Fighting Darkness

Fighting Darkness
Date of Scene:	31 December 2012
Location:	Hollow Bastion - Courtyard
Synopsis:	Eager to learn more about the darkness, Katyna runs into Riku again, who offers her a little 'demonstration'..
Cast of Characters:	Riku, Katyna

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Katyna has posed:
Katyna was feeling frustrated lately. Her search for the truth seemed to be going in circles. Her path seemed unclear all of a sudden..And that darned scar Angantyr had given her still ached like hell. After a philosophical discussion with Hati, Katyna had returned to the courtyard for some fresh air, hoping to clear her mind.

As she stands upon one of the icy stepping stones at the bottom of the castle entrance, she seems to be focusing on some sort of Kata, focusing her power to shape the flames of her sword into various shapes as she spins around, striking out out at imaginary opponents.

She had discarded her dark knight armour and her alter ego along with it. After Angantyr had attacked her, it had been damaged and needed repairing. Moving around like this was a lot less restrictive in her lighter tunic and black leggings attire anyways. Right now she wasn't concerned about Shadow Lords seeing her in her alter ego, although after watching Skoll defect, she was feeling wary around others..

"I can do this.." She grits her teeth, carefully dipping low enough to slice through a thin block of ice, evaporating it easily with her flaming sword, fireheart. "I'll show 'em I'm not just some kid.." swish swish.. "Maybe some day soon, they'll take me seriously.."

Riku has posed:
It was almost eerie how familiar this place could get and at the same time, he would turn a corner and feel all over again the sense of being lost in the lonely depths of the castle. It was big enough to swallow an entire town in and of itself, let alone a few scattered wanderers.

Riku found himself roaming the walls again, absorbed with his own thoughts when he walked out under an arch and down some steps. This balcony gave him an overview of the lower parts of the castle. He leaned his elbows on the railing to watch the flashing movements of the unfamiliar warrior.

The teenager vaults over the side, dropping from a somewhat great height and sliding down an icy ledge that spirals around the edge of a platform and then again to land on one of the moving platforms that arrives just in time to receive him. He walks off of it, face wary and stance still carefully neutral. "Getting some practice in, I see."

Katyna has posed:
Yeah, this is more like it! It was almost enough to ease her hyperactive mind, not a care in the world, just a spark of dancing flame. She grins to herself as she continues to trace circles in the cool air with fiery trails, changing color gradually from flame red, to amber, to green and even violet..

"Heh, piece of cake..Now if I can just.." Suddenly a familiar voice calls out to her, catching her off-guard. The ice is slippery when one loses their concentration, and Kat's always been easily distracted.

"Ack!" Down she goes, landing very ungracefully on her butt. "Owie..." It takes her a moment to gain her balance, peering down at the slippery ground. Yeah, soon as she loses her focus..Ugh. She glances up at the distraction, making a face at Riku.

"Hey..Dont sneak up on my like....Oh, it's you again." Kat seems to have forgotten more or less the admonishment he'd given her earlier. She's also forgotten that she's not in her Ember guise. "Hey, Riku. what you up to?"

Katyna has posed:
Yeah, this is more like it! It was almost enough to ease her hyperactive mind, not a care in the world, just a spark of dancing flame. She grins to herself as she continues to trace circles in the cool air with fiery trails, changing color gradually from flame red, to amber, to green and even violet..

"Heh, piece of cake..Now if I can just.." Suddenly a familiar voice calls out to her, catching her off-guard. The ice is slippery when one loses their concentration, and Kat's always been easily distracted.

"Ack!" Down she goes, landing very ungracefully on her butt. "Owie..." It takes her a moment to gain her balance, peering down at the slippery ground. Yeah, soon as she loses her focus..Ugh. She glances up at the distraction, making a face at Riku.

"Hey..Dont sneak up on me like....Oh, it's you again." Kat seems to have forgotten more or less the admonishment he'd given her earlier. She's almost forgotten that she's not in her Ember guise, but..Maybe she can fool him. Katyna grins. "Hey, Riku. what you up to?"

Riku has posed:
"Sorry. I didn't mean to make you lose your concentration." And there is absolute no hint that he is actually sorry at all. Riku looks at the armor, then at the icy platform around them. "That's a pretty impressive trick." he says, gesturing to where the color shifting flame had been.

He crosses his arms, shifting his weight slightly. "Are you one of Seith's?" his voice is completely flat as he asks this, raising an eyebrow just slightly. He shows no sign of recognizing Ember one way or another.

"I haven't seen you around like this, but--" he shrugs in response to his own trailing sentence. "It's a big castle."

Katyna has posed:
Katyna arches a brow, trying to figure him out. such a strange one this guy..So cool and disinterested, or was there some emotion hidden beneath that indifferent visage? Somehow, she'd find out, one way or the other.

"Hah, you haven't seen nothin' yet!" she smirks, shrugging as he asks about Seith. "Might be. And of course, you'd be the great Shadow Lord, Riku, right?" Katyna looks at her sword, and it instantly sizzles out before she resheathes it at her side. She steps nearer to the mysterious one, tilting her head a bit. "Heh, I've been around..More than you think.."

Katyna grins, "It really IS a big castle. I dont even know half the people here yet!"

Riku has posed:
Riku continues to stare at Katyna as she oscillates from flattery to something like scorn and then back again in the space of a single breath.

He walks in a semi circle around the armor, thumbs hooked in the pockets of his jeans as works his way around to face Katyna. "Well. If you would honor me with a demonstration?" he summons a shadowy blade of mist into his hand that crystallizes with a faint snap.

"I have been rusty of late. Perhaps I don't deserve such a grand title."

Katyna has posed:
Kat scratches her head as she doesn't even get a smile out of him. Darnit, why's he so...So serious all the time? She's even managed to get Hati to smile once or twice in the past. It was rare, but.....Heh!

She arches a brow when he asks her for a demonstration, smile fading a bit. Ooh, she's heard of him, there's a reason why he's the leader of the Shadow Lords, young though he may be..After getting her butt kicked by Angantyr, Kat's not too keen to boast of her ability..

But on the other hand, she really hates to back down from a challenge. "Oh yeah?" that cheerful smile reappears on her young face again and she brushes the hilt of her sword thoughtfully. "I'd be..Totally honored to spar with you, but..What do I get if I win?"

Riku has posed:
Riku takes a few steps to the side, the sword hung at his side as he begins to idly circle Katyna. He doesn't seem all that focused or interested in the match.

"Well." he says with a shrug of one shoulder. "Sorry, but I don't know you that well. What do you want?" Riku continues to idly circle, sliding from foot to foot across the ice.

"Forgive me if I'm a little wary of handing a stranger a blank check." he brings the sword up into a defensive position, gesturing for Katyna to come forwards and make the first attack when she is prepared.

Katyna has posed:
Just once, she'd like to see him smile, to act like a teenager, rather than as a serious adult who seems to have had all the happiness sucked out of him. But would it be too bold to ask that?

She could attempt to use this subtle trickery thing he's always telling her about, but..Kat's not very good at secrets. "Oh..You dont remember me? We met before, back in Hollow Bastion. You showed me the darkness. But.."

Katyna also crouches a little, bringing up her sword and nods. "Maybe for now, just defeating you would be an honor.." ~But I WILL get you to smile, one day!~ She thinks with a little impish smile of her own.. Then he seems to beckon her to attack him first, and her carmine eyes flare to life, rushing at him with her sword that suddenly bursts into blue flames, unleashing a chain series of blinding explosions as she attempts to slash at him three times in rapid succession.

Riku has posed:
Riku raises the sword too late. The sword clashes against the first two strikes, Riku pushing the attacks just enough off course that they only slash into his side and shoulder with grazing wounds mostly bound up by the armored jacket.

He leaps backwards by the time the third comes into play, black thorns erupting from the ground and attempting to pull Katyna backwards. "I know." he says as he lands and brings the sword up to bear again. "But I didn't feel like dispelling any more illusions today. Since you haven't shown me this one, I played along."

He extends a hand towards Katyna, then pauses, curling the fingers and dropping it to his side as wind swirls around the both of them on this icy platform. "Come on, Ember. Try a little harder."

Katyna has posed:
Well, darnit! He knew all along? Brr..Of course he knew! This one's sure tricky to outwit, and Kat's not exactly sneaky..Not when it doesn't involve thievery at any rate! She laughs nervously, shaking her head, "Heh, of course you knew. Just..Don't spread it around, hey?" She has a secret identity for good reason, afterall..

The attacks barely seem to graze him, although he quickly counters with black thorns that cut into Kat's legs a bit, but dont do any serious damage. Still, she feels a bit weakenned by the poison as she stumbles back a bit. "Ugh..Alright then..Here goes!"

Kat begins to circle him slowly, seeking an openning, then with a battle yell, she lunges out quickly, green flame glowing along the blade of her sword although when she strikes, it gives off a choking green smoke more than flashy fire.

She jabs quickly at him, then darts back before spinning around to deliver a series of quick back hand strikes at his armour. Should it connect, a strange flaming rune will form briefly then shatter upon contact, hopefully softening his armor a little in a burst of intense heat.

Riku has posed:
"Of course not. Why would I?" Riku circles as Kat circles, coughing and choking as he gets a sudden lungful of smoke. It dulls his reflexes and although he is able to deflect the jab, the backhanded strikes land home and the back of his jacket explodes with the intense heat.

Riku rolls forwards quickly, thrown across the icy platform. Black shards of ice materialize from the air, slicing low across the platform before swooping up at Katyna as the teenager throws the remnants of his armored jacket to the platform to smoulder, his back livid with the evidence of burns. Still, there is no feeling that he is drawing darkness to himself or even using it except in the most basic forms.

The wounds slowly begin to heal as he takes out a potion and consumes it. "Good." he says to Katyna, nodding slowly. He rushes towards her, sliding across the ice before suddenly vanishing from in front of her. "But I can pull that trick too." Riku reaches out to put a hand on her back, a flare of concentrated dark energy slicing out towards her from close range.

Katyna has posed:
Kat nods. "Thanks.." Of course, y'never know who you can trust around here, but..Hopefully his words are more honest than his masklike visage. She steps back deftly, trying to dodge his quick attacks, but Riku proves the more agile of the two, and with a yelp of surprise she slips on the ice as his black ice tears through her mid section, ripping through flesh underneath..It's not a fatal wound, but it's still quite severe..And cold too, for one who prefers the heat.

"Gah!" She yelps, staggering a bit sluggishly to her feet, attempting to counter wih a flare of fire from a quick sword jab should he come too close..She's breathing a bit more heavily now as she tries to regain her balance, but he's quicker again, blasting her back with dark energy.

"Dammit...I'm not gonna go down so easily!" But first, to beef up her defenses! She summons dark flames to surround her briefly, causing her to briefly glow in ember flames..

Riku has posed:
Riku raises an arm, turning his face away as the flare of fire forces him back a step or two and adds to the burn count. This was starting to get beyond 'dislike smoke' territory into the realm of beginning to seriously torque him off.

He kept a firm hold over his temper however, gritting his teeth as he finally relented to drawing in just enough energy to heal the worst of the burns. The wind becomes fiercer, spiraling around him as he begins to circle around Katyna again.

"I liked that jacket. You owe me a new one." he tells her with the faintest hint of a smirk. He extends a hand, the dark winds shrieking and murmuring as they surge towards Katyna.

Katyna has posed:
"Aw c'mon, get mad!" She grins as he so casually mentions the jacket. "Just once, let it all out..Hey I might even buy you a new one!" Another flash of that impish smile and a wink, but..Dammit. This guy's tough! Tougher than anyone she's ever faced before..

But then, that makes her all the more determined to win this thing. If she can just beat him..Maybe he'd take her more seriously! "Alright then..No more messin' around!" She grits her teeth, carmine eyes flashing for a moment as if they truly were alight with fire..

She rushes at him, black flames spiraling up the length of her sword arm as she attempts to slash at him several times in wide arcs, the tendrils of flame uncoiling and rushing out at him, attempting to hold him fast so that she can drain his energy..

Riku has posed:
Riku doesn't smile again.

He furrows his brow slightly as Katyna throws herself forwards again. It was like looking back in time, looking down a long corridor to many months ago. It seemed longer than that. A lifetime away.

His eyes widen slightly as she continues to come forwards and, again, throws black flames in long arcs. He blocks every attack but the sword was not truely what he was supposed to be watching. The black flames wash over him, holding him and causing his knees to buckle.

He slams hard into the ice platform, held in place by the draining fire.
% BA-UMP

I. will not.. lose my.. focus.

He had been holding back, holding onto the darkness for weeks. Despite the chaos, and the confusion. He had fought and struggled, and he had withdrawn from the darkness so that he could figure things out with using it as a crunch. Without it clouding his thinking.

Riku growls very, very softly, his body shuddering and jumping as he tries and falls to get up to his feet. His head is hung low, eyes half lidded.

Katyna has posed:
Katyna grits her teeth as she rushes at him, but it doesn't seem to be enough! He blocks every attack, bats them away as if she'd tapped him lightly on the shoulder, a mere gnat against a mighty bull...Ugh, how could he? Where did all this power come from!?

"You deflected my attacks? How? No way!" She blinks in surprise, but doesn't slow her assault. He's strong, and she's sure he's still not going all out. But, she cant give up now! Would he kill her, if he won? Was he capable of that? Or..Did he really mean it before, trying to discourage her from the darkness, offering his help if she needed it?

Kat shakes her head, Focus, dammit! She still had one more trick up her sleeve. She wasn't about to give up now! "Ugh.." the young mystic knight is about to rush him again, but hesitates for a moment as his head hangs low. What was this..Was he feinting? Or..Was something wrong? No, she can't hesitate, she has to take this moment. It's now or never!

"I wont give up!" She straightens up in spite of the heavy wounds she has acquired and she digs her sword into the ground where flames mingle with tendrils of darkness, climbing up the length of her arm and her blade where it bursts into black flame.

Her sword seems to grow more massive as she swings it rapidly around her like a cyclone, rushing at Riku as waves of black fire sweep towards him, unleashing an explosion of flame, steel and darkness.

Riku has posed:
I will not.

Riku doesn't move from the kneeling position until he gets ahold of his darkness firmly enough that he will not just strike at her in a frenzy. He wants to. The image of slamming her into the platform until blood started to leak out snaps his head back a little. It's one of the nightmare images he--

Riku narrows his eyes slightly, rolling backwards to avoid the whirling carnage. Waves of black fire sweep around and past him and he vanishes from sight in a blaze of black fire and steel. Katyna hit something. There was resistance against her slashing blade, but there was no Riku left behind in the aftermath of the strike. A soft gasp of pain reveals his position behind her again.

He is charred from head to foot, the slash cutting from shoulder to hip in a long cauterized gash. He holds a hand across his chest, drawing in quiet gasps of air inbetween clenched teeth as he continues to stare at Katyna.

Do it. She wants to see everything. She so desperately wants to throw herself at the darkness. Let her impale herself on it.

Riku swallows and coughs as if he's choking on the words. He continues to glare at Katyna, walking with the force of an inevitable glacier one step at a time towards her. There is no shadowblade in his hand. The black winds go quiet as he draws his darkness around him, fingers drumming across his thigh as he takes in a deep and painful breath and forces himself to be the example of restraint for once.

It was sort of ironic, being the voice of reason again. "/Enough./" he commands in a soft and determined voice, expelling all of that chained darkness, but in a way that HE chooses-- and not in an explosion of darkness and fury.

Katyna has posed:
She could very well die in this battle today, but Kat's insatiable curiosity and desire for this power was perhaps overwhelming her sense of self-preservation..WHat was it that had tipped her to the edge like this, thirsting so desperately for power, not because she wanted to destroy the world, but because she wanted to save herself from a doomed world?

She stumbles back, nearly losing her footing once she unleashes her dark power. To be honest, Katyna knew there wasn't much left in her, she was already badly wounded and breathing heavily, but, Kat didn't want to admit defeat. She didn't want to be a coward, afterall..

Katyna slowly climbs to one shakey knee, just in time to see the dark winds gathering around the teen, and she knows that this might be her last breath. ~Oh well..~ she thinks, ~At least I didn't go down without a good fight..~

Still, the young mystic knight crosses her arms in front of her, using her great sword as a shield of sorts as the darkness advances towards her, and then, as if in slow motion, the blasts of pure darkness assault her savagely, blasting her off her feet, sending her slamming into another chunk of ice.

"Ugh..." she barely moves, but she's still alive. "S-So, that's it, huh? That's the power of the darkness that you are so hesitant to use? That you didn't think I could handle?" She laughs a bit shakily, climbing once more...Although this time she can barely make it to her knees. There is no cocky grin on her face this time, only a slight frown that hides whatever fear she feels underneath it all. She reaches for her sword, but she's too weak to even strike back. Instead, she summons a protective shield around herself, hoping at least that it will spare her from a quick and painful death..

Riku has posed:
Riku lets out an explosive breath as if he had been holding it. He coughs several times, groaning faintly as he walks over to pick up the smouldering remnants of his jacket.

He looks at it, sighs and throws the remnants over his shoulder as he moves towards Katyna. "No." Riku still holds his chest very tenderly as he takes in a shaky breath, shivering from the sudden cold of expending so much darkness. It felt surprisingly good thought, and not because he lashed out at a naive minion. He felt good because he listened to the darkness inside him and then decided not to comply. He used it, and was not used in turn.

Riku smirks lopsidedly at Katyna, offering her a potion in an extended hand. "I did, after all, say this was a demonstration. Not an actual fight. Try to listen a little more, Ember?"

Katyna has posed:
Katyna blinks, glancing back at him. oh, right, just a demonstration, but...Well, it felt pretty darn real! "Yeah you did, but..Could have fooled me.." She laughs nervously, taking the potion gladly as she climbs shakily to her feet.

"Then, you were holding back, weren't you.." She seems dissapointed, shaking her head as she downs the hi potion. Phew, thats a bit better, but.

"Oh, I guess I totalled your jacket!" She makes a face. "No really, let's go to Traverse some time, I'll buy you a new one, promise!" Maybe then, she'll actually get to see him smile..Maybe? But right now, she just needs a good long rest, and a break from all this fighting.

"No kidding, you're really strong.."