Inner Strength (Rai/Kiyr)

[Mathew Amtrum]

"You are forbidden from laying a finger on me."

He said as he took a step back, running his hand over the small blade and making it longer and thinner.

"Strike me down with your Qi, for I am your enemy."

[Raikotsu Sudeki]

Rai would relax his body and his mind building up the blood in his body to let it seep out to cover his skin covering his whole body in a protective layer of blood, then he would from a blade of his own in his hand.

"Kiyr."

Was all Rai would say to see if she was ready.

[Kyrie Blaze]

'...that blade...'

Kyrie knew what it was. Her eyes narrowed and she took a stance that - from Mathew's experience with Bastille - would be familiar. Drawing a deep breath, she pushed her qi to her hand and formed a blade of shadow. A rapier, like the one Mathew was just finishing to shape.

"...go."

That was all she said before she lunged, right foot in line beneath her right arm, moving her entire body with the thrust, for Mathew's center line. But she was counting that Mathew was going to be stronger and faster. A bead of sweat formed at her temple...

...the shadows at her feet expanded.

If possible, she was going to extend it to hit Mathew's own shadow for an escape route. Just because Mathew had a sword of stone in his hand didn't mean that was all--he was an Enemy, and thus, couldn't be counted upon to 'fight fairly'. If Mathew defended, she would 'blink' into the shadow and--

. o O ( Leaving that as an open ending. )

[Mathew Amtrum]

Mathew slid back and countered her blade with his with a small smile on his face, always unwavering. The stone beneath their feet shifting and sliding up his body to encase his skin in stone, much like Rai did with his blood. He did not press the attack yet, not while it was just Kiyr.

"I said both of you, strike me down. This is your one warning. If you do poorly here I WILL kill you where you stand."

[Raikotsu Sudeki]

Rai charged forward when Kiyr said go, she had gotten her attack deflect Rai would aim for Mathews hand hopefully before it got encased in stone to knock the blade from his hand.

[Kyrie Blaze]

Instead of fighting the counter, Kyrie rotated her wrist in a decisive flick to free her sword. Rai was fast; how he'd managed to do so, so quickly, was currently beyond her, and beyond her care. As he struck for Mathew's hand, the wrist-flick was finished and the shadow changed shape. With a burst of Qi, she reshaped it to a thick, whip-like cord and with a quick motion, she shot and guided it to coil around Mathew's neck while on the move with a step inwards.

If it wrapped around his neck, she would drop her weight into it and sling-shot herself between his legs - a bad idea, perhaps, but she was hoping for surprise - with a twist to come up behind him, facing him, and hopefully having pulled him downwards a little.

As she regained her feet, the whip-cord would dissipate as she knew it wouldn't hold him and only left herself at a disadvantage. Several times before, she had know and seen that he had the Earth beneath his shirt.

But did she really want to kill him?

No.

Not truly, no, but if they did poorly...

She would trust in her Master's ability to stay alive even as she went and pressed for the kill.

So when she planted her feet, gentle and firm, she thrust a newly-formed rapier point - sharp and lethal - for the back of his neck instead of for the back and his heart. All the while, knowing that just because she was behind him didn't mean he was defenseless and she should expect a counter.

[Mathew Amtrum]

Rai's blood hit Mathew's skin just as it was encasing itself in stone. The hand moved with the strike against it, but he did not drop the blade. Instead he winked at his one eyed apprentice even as the whip wrapped around his neck. which was having stone work up over it as well creeping up to his face. She pulled him downward alright, and he went with it fully. Slamming his blade in to the stone, sinking it in deeply to the hilt.

The stone around him erupted in to spikes from the impact and shot out in all directions. Sharp stone looking to impale his young apprentices, and where Mathew had held back in the past, he did not seem to be holding back as much this time. (Charisma value for the attack 60)

ED set nulls used 1/3

[Raikotsu Sudeki]

As soon as the first spikes began to appear Rai grabbed the first one in front of him willing his blood to flick the clasp of each shin guard so that Rai would be unhindered by their weight. Then he would jump off the spike heading towards Mathew blood sword still in hand he would will the sword to become as large as a claymore as he came in a downward spike using his momentum the weight of the sword and gravity as all forces to bring that blade down to come into contact with Mathews Earth Defense.

[Kyrie Blaze]

With the sound of the sword smashing into the ground, Kyrie's eyes widened. Darkness - shadows - began to swirl around her, enabling her to fade for a second that probably saved her life and she tried to use the momentum and one of the first spikes to jump from the ground and rebound off of it. A strangled cry sounded in the back of her throat as she just wasn't fast enough to evade fully--rips and cuts formed along her clothes and skin as she was thrown up into the air.

But even with the pain and the bright slash of blood, she wasn't giving up. She used the fact that she was airborne to press her attack, tucking her body in with a sharp twist. When she came back down, she had a shadow pike aimed for the back of Mathew's neck where it met his shoulders, intending on using her weight and the momentum to - perhaps hopefully - break through and cause some damage. Tricky because Rai was in the same-ish area, but doable.

She'd noted the lack of anything the first time, but...couldn't and wouldn't stop.

[Mathew Amtrum]

Rai was faster than he thought he was. That was good, and while Kiyr wasn't fast enough to dodge the blow completely she was quick enough to react. Good signs on both accounts. He released the sword and shifted his head to expose more of his neck as his body was fully encased in the thin layer of stone.

He barely left them time to register that once again nothing seemed to happen from their attacks before small dime sized spikes of stone shot from his body, tearing through his clothes to try and stab in to both of their torsos. His foot raising up and then slamming down to send a ripple through the ground to try and slide them back away from him and gain some distance.

"Not bad so far. Better mastery than last time. Show me your most powerful moves."

ED set nulls used 3/3

[Raikotsu Sudeki]

Just as his sword hit nothing would happen except for more stone spikes would shoot out of his body! The spikes broke through his blood defense but the first one helped cause enough force to give him momentum backwards, 2 more would hit him in his stomach and ribs and he would extend the blade of the sword to help him push himself backwards. Once he had pushed himself to a somewhat decent distance the blood sword would change into a whip and would wrap around Mathews now exposed throat and using the momentum he just had to fly backwards he would use to try to topple Mathew over so that Kyir might be lucky enough to get an attack from behind... IF he was able to knock him down.

[Kyrie Blaze]

The fact that she held onto the pike - a test of will and endurance without Levi's boost - even after it slammed into Mathew said something, at least, and that she was taking this seriously.

It turned out to be a good thing.

By the time she saw and subconsciously realized that their two attacks had done nothing, spikes erupted from Mathew's form.

"Nh!"

Shooting her Qi into the weapon she still held onto, she shot higher, back into the air, turning her body. Like earlier she wasn't fast enough, so too she wasn't, this time. But she could minimize the damage, somewhat. But only somewhat. By the distance she had, she had a beat longer to react. The spikes still hit: piercing her side and higher up on her thighs - just missing the brand - which changed her direction as she twisted, one hand having shifted to push herself away from another spike.

The pike dissipated as she twisted and shot a pillar of shadow into Mathew's as the ground rippled and used it to snap herself into his. By his words, she knew what would happen--she'd seen several times.

'Fils de pute de bordel dans le nom de dieu de connard de saloperie de--'[/color]

She reached out of the shadow, darkness coating her hands as she gripped his ankles and pulled him - not into the ground, but - into shadow. Just to the middle of his calf and held so hopefully Raikotsu's attack would have Mathew face-planting hard.
[/font]

[Mathew Amtrum]

He felt the blood whip wrap around his neck, and he was lucky that he had the foresight to coat his skin in stone. The stone around his arm protruded outward and formed a blade as Kiyr grabbed his ankles and messed with his balance. He was falling! But as he fell he lashed out with the blade of stone and cut the blood whip. From what he remembered if it wasn't connected to Rai he couldn't use it anymore.

Mathew crashed in to the ground with a rumble, his body sinking in to the stone until he was fully submerged and then the two apprentices would find themselves alone. On the surface at least.

[Raikotsu Sudeki]

Rai called to Kyir to get off the ground and he hoped she would hear him as he himself jumped up and attempted to climb a nearby building using blood claws so as to get off the ground! Where the hell did you go master... If Rai made it to the top of the building he would then calm his mind and begin to focus his Qi, he hadn't done this trick before but Mathew wanted to see his best move, then the next time he resurfaced Rai would have one ready for him...

[Kyrie Blaze]

As he fell, Mathew ironically pulled her from his shadow. It was either she let him or she would be ejected in a less than pleasant way as his shadow completely disappeared as he sank into the ground. She gasped for a moment, her right hand moving involuntarily to her left side before she moved to get out of the hotspot.

Which, really...that was the entire ground.

She was starting to push on her reserves, but to hopefully lighten her steps, shadows swirled around her and she flickered in them as she moved, hand coming away bloody as she put the pain out of her mind as best she could. With grit teeth she made to move to the closest building that she could and leap for a ledge; not with Raikotsu, but near enough that they weren't at a disadvantage if either of them needed the help. Summoning her strength and endurance, she hop-jumped up the wall to just snag a higher ledge...and then moved to the side, blue gaze darting back to the ground.

Where was he?