Caging a Crow [Raphael/Kressara]

[Kressara Thryn]

Long lashes veiled her narrowing eyes as every word he spoke egged on that rage building deep inside, though she wore her anger on the surface like an armor. Whatever hatred she didn’t show on the outside must be more than enough to impress any Sith right now, and the girl didn’t mind showing it off for the sake of beating down the object of her anxiety and exhaustion. The stress was sickening to her and right now kicking his royal hide from there to Bespin and back was her only method of destroying that angst.

“Just get on with it!” Kressara spat and flinched as once again he toyed with her high strung responses to any false fronts.

Rain pitter-pattered against the landing pad and slowly drenched the two again. Her enemy swung a sword in her direction, literally lobbing it over the watery ground towards her. Kressara scooped up the weapon and brandished it without much fineness to boast about, but at least she was brave enough to point the blade at the youthful Sith.

“You will soon beg for your life farm girl.” Her opponent glowered and was met with a heated retort.

“I’ll beg for nothing!!!”

He was upon her far faster than she’d hoped, slashing first at her chest with that harrowing agility of his. Kressara side stepped and narrowly missed his attack as the tip of the sword grazed her armor, then received a well aimed slice across her thigh on his second strike. His enemy sucked in air before letting out an angered groan and backing off.

She couldn’t afford to make that mistake twice. Blood with the dilution of the rain seeped down her armor and painted one of her knees scarlet. Kressara took a second to breath and then rushed him, dodging to the left last minute and swinging in an upward arc with frightening force for such a small looking girl. Such a hit if connected might do serious damage to his torso and chest.

[Ben Kenobi]

Raphael Xandir VS. Kressara Thryn

Victorious
Raphael Xandir
25 EXP
40,000 credits
Minor Wounds

Defeated
Kressara Thryn
5 EXP
10,000 credits
Moderate Wounds

[Kressara Thryn]

Raphael was fast to block her attack with his blade, but the impact of her heavy swing was bone rattling to say the least. The girl could land a strike with terrifying power, even if she wasn’t the most careful hitter. Kressara’s hands went numb from the vibrations of the clash and it took all her resolve to hold her blade steady while glaring up at the sith from between their crossed swords. Such ferocity! Such hatred! The girl would make for a natural on the battlefield someday.

“Good! You’re not as weak as you look!” The sith taunted with a smirk.

“Shut up!!!” Kressara seethed in response and pushed against his blade, forcing him to take a step back.

“Your strength is impressive girl, but you lack form!” Raphael easily slid out from the oppression of her blade and with a well placed kick to her back he sent the girl stumbling forward. “See how easily your strength can be used against you?” He practically laughed the words as she turned herself around and stabbed at him, lunging forward into her thrust with a yell of frustration. The sith sucked in his stomach and curved his body to avoid being ran through. He countered with an upwards arc of his blade to force her arm into the air before grasping her wrist and twisting her arm painfully behind her back. Raphael jerked her arm, trying to force her to drop her weapon. Kressara screamed but refused to release the blade regardless of the fact that he was reopening her old lightsaber wound. “Drop it girl, and maybe I’ll leave your arm unbroken!”

Kressara said nothing as anger shocked through her veins like electricity. She saw red, heard red, tasted red. Her whole universe stopped in that moment just to watch the battle between captor and captive, the snake prince and the crow. Her body contorted in such a way that her shoulder popped and cracked from the pressure as she defied his hold and with a shift in footing she whirled around to land an elbow square against his abdomen. Raphael released her and sucked in air as her elbow connected to his celiac plexus, knocking the wind out of him if only briefly. The girl swung at his head with her vibroblade and her wounded arm creaked. Raphael ducked under her attack and returned the favor by body checking her with enough force to drop the young woman to the ground.

The pair took a few seconds to catch their breath after a tit for tat series of hits to the gut. The sith prince recovered first and readied his vibroblade.

“Very good, girl...but now it’s my turn!” He growled and lashed out at her legs with his blade, giving her no choice but to roll out of the way each time he swung. Kressara blocked his final swing with her sword, but his height advantage put her at a loss and she was left without anywhere to flee. She rolled onto her stomach after parrying another strike and with desperation launched herself off the ground. Raphael’s boot made contact with her rib cage before she could escape and sent her toppling over even closer to the edge of the landing pad. Kressara coughed and struggled to rise again, but another kick to the face nearly knocked the girl clear out. She possessed no experience in a fight to this magnitude and once on the ground it seemed nigh impossible for her to get back up under such assault. A mosquito like buzzing coupled with mental fog swallowed Kressara’s senses momentarily before the true pain of the hit set in. He’d struck her mouth with the tip of his boot and now scarlet fluid poured from her lips and nose enough to form a puddle on the tarmac. The impact stunned her and though she noticeably tried to stand again her equilibrium was too off set, only stumbling further, or more accurately crawling from Raphael.

“Ask nicely girl, and I’ll end this now.” He was certain she’d been beaten and wanted an admission of sorts. He should have known that would only strengthen her resolve to win this.

“Not in a million years…” She choked on her own blood and resumed all the angrier. “Will I ever beg anything of you...you psychotic, lunatic of a man! You can take your destiny and shove it where the-”

Raphael grabbed her by the neck and lifted her off the ground and over the edge of the landing pad, hand firmly latched around her larynx.

“And what about now?”

Kressara’s eyes were wide and terror shot through every nerve as she clung to the arm that lifted her up. Still she remained vigilant, not begging for her life even as he dangled her high above the ground. She had dropped her weapon when he grabbed her, was bleeding from top to bottom, choking, and scared out of her mind over the ledge of a fall that would kill even the strongest warriors, but never did she beg. He held her there until his own arm grew tired before whipping her back over the landing pad and onto the concrete. The girl screamed and rolled onto her back, hacking as the air burned her lungs. She was harmless now, but trying to recover herself enough to fight on. That much was impressive about her, even if the fight was particularly short lived. Raphael sheathed his vibroblade and took one of the rifles from the guards at the prison entrance, then came to stand over his defeated opponent who just didn’t know how to give up.

“Last chance.” He offered, more amused than anything else at this point.

Kressara whimpered and Raphael’s eyebrow rose expectantly. She heaved for air one last time, choking out a cry as if she might start pleading for her life as soon as she regained the ability to speak.

He waited and all went silent before the bloodied farm girl finally spoke. “Please….please!...just go die in a ditch.”

Raphael’s expression deadpanned and with a roll of his eyes he flipped the rifle around and struck her over the temple with the butt of the gun.

All went black.



(((Continued in “The Existence of Fate” training thread.)))