Duel:Ignatius v Kasyr

Duelists: Ignatius vs. Kasyr.
Duel: Traditional 3 posts each, with final defense. 15 minute posting limit.
Stakes: Autohit to victor.
Judges: Quinmyutiot, Satoshi (mid), Kuzial
Winner:Kasyr, split vote.

Hidden Mountaintop Colosseum

Ignatius touched a finger to the brim of his hat to serve as something of a salute and to also tilt it a bit further down over the hollowed sockets that were once upon a time occupied by eyeballs. And then suddenly, Ignatius' entire form was alive with such motion that one might have forgotten for a moment that he was actually a walking corpse of a man at all. In a moment, the knight had bent knees and sprang himself upwards to grasp upon the ledge of the seating area with his left hand - pulling himself upwards into the audience that shuffled this way and that to remove themselves from his path if only because fights in Frostmaw were a frightful affair that few actually wished to get in the middle of. The previously unused right hand had since come to be gripping the hilt of his backe swerd with thumb pressed against pommel to aid in grip but he did not yet forth that weapon as he made his approach. Instead he spun as he came to stand before Kasyr, left arm moving inwards towards his chest to flare out the tail of his duster into the revenant's face. It was with this same motion that gave birth to the momentum that would unsheathe his sword and augment the force with which the slash traveled as he came back around to face Kasyr - the sharp edge of his weapon aimed to catch a long arc across the vampire's chest.

Kasyr doesn't fail to take heed of the manner in which Ignatius' hand falls upon the blade, even if his only response to the Knights charge comes in the form of a broad stretch. It's only when Ignatius falls into that graceful pivot that has the audience gasping for both the deftness of the motion and the unveiling of the blade that the Kensai allows a smirk to grace his features. It's due to the stretch, really, since his hand is currently resting upon the hilt of the longsword that's buried within the back of his stone seat. It's with all due swiftness that his fingers tighten about the hilt, the full extent of his unnatural strength as a Revenant, as Himself, being mustered to wrench the blade clear in a forward motion- though a tis bit downwards and in the direction -opposite- of Ignatius' pivot. After all, what better way to protect against a strike unseen- than to ensure there's a good few feet of steel interposed between a target that's no longer taking up as much space. The answer comes in the form of a clear ringing noise; a flourish of sparks spraying between the two as steel meets steel. Ignatius will have very few moments to relish this moment however, as Kasyr promptly shoves into his sword to force enough distance that he might roll clear of his seat- Long sword flickering out to catch across the undead Errant-knights gut and leg should he not move clear.

Ignatius could almost remember what if felt like to have your heart thumping in your chest as blood pulsed through veins to deliver the adrenaline of battle throughout the body. It was a sweet and yet bitter recollection, like taking a drink of a lovely sour red wine. It helped to fuel the knight and feed him with that oh-so famililar desire to blindly divulge himself in battle. The fact that Kasyr carried a reputation of great might only served to thrill Ignatius even moreso than he had been by the sound of the audience that now more fully surrounded him. The fact that Kasyr managed to block his attack only made Ignatius crave to see more of what the revenant was capable of, his mouth upturning into a grizzled smile of bare teeth and wasted flesh. His counter to the shove was threefold, the first step being to simply let it happen and let Kasyr begin to spread the distance between the two. But he had absolutely no intention of actually permitting much of a gap to form, left hand lunging out to grasp for a shin or perhaps an ankle as the revenant began his tumble. Perhaps the most important motion though was that of the backe swerd as it was thrust forward to catch Kasyr's longsword pommel against pommel.

Kasyr grimaces when he feels a bit of pressure upon his left ankle, and knows his attempt at a roll is destined for failure. Reflexively, his left hand juts down towards the ground, ensuring the abrupt cessation of his forward movements, while at the same time providing him leverage for the invariable counter-attack. Braced as he is, it's not too difficult to lean clear of the Ignatius thrust- with only the sharp crunch emanating from his sword bearing hand as the knights blade slams into his flesh serving to alert him to the other warriors ruse. With barely a moment to consider his alternatives, the Revenant simply juts his legs -towards- Ignatius- that left hand of his now serving to shove himself against the Undeads strength, so that he could ensnare Ignatius' legs with his own. The knight wouldn't be given time to contemplate this development either, the Kensai moving to knock the crossguard of his blade into that of Ignatius' - intention being to either knock it clear of the mans hand..or, at the very least, keep it away from between them. After all, the Kensai is quite intent upon using every ounce of his supernatural strength to shove off his left hand- to send himself rolling off the side of the 'Spectator' box reserved for Coterie...and to hopefully drag Ignatius down with him into a violent tumble through the seats that line the arena.

Ignatius had been far to delighted by the whole ordeal to notice the entangling of legs that would soon enough spell out a bit of disaster but it was not long before Ignatius would become fully aware of the tumble that this was destined to become. He willingly released his sword when they clashed together if only to free his hand so that it might more appropriately be made use of as they went crashing down the rows of seating - audience members diving this way and that to remove themselves from the trajectory of this rather chaotic fall. Ignatius' right hand was thrusting upwards towards the armpit of Kasyr's sword-arm to lock it in place as best he could as his back slammed against the hard stone floor with enough force to usher a distinctly noticeable 'oomph' from the undead's decayed lips. But this fight had not yet ended and broken bones were much easier for an undead to ignore than most others might find them. Knees curled up as Kasyr came crashing down upon him, pushing up against the vampire's stomach so as to force the revevant heel over head towards the ground that Ignatius had just had a very rough introduction with. And all the while, his left hand was punching away at wherever it might manage to land upon Kasyr if only because it needed to contribute something to this tumble as well.

Kasyr , despite the stoic facade that he offers to his opponent, is cursing inside his head each and every time their bodies slam against those stone seats. With the confusion of their unpleasent downwards roll and the jarring jostles of providing by stone and rival carcass; it's no surprise that the Kensai only becomes aware that his arm is being held by Ignatius' and not by the centripetal force originating from their tumble. An unforunately violent slamming of his face off the floor momentarily halts him from taking motion, and effectively marks the point at which the rapidly growing tally of bruises and cuts stops growing upon the Revenants face. Still, the Revenant is nothing, if not determined. Thus, it's no surprise that though his fingers relinquish its hold upon the mundane blade it once held, it's not a sign of submission, but rather so that the revenant can take grab hold of Ignatius right hand. Even as the undead knight sends him arching head over heels, to slam down into the ground a second time- the Revenant does not relinquish his hold. It's about the point that Ignatius fist slams into his face and bounces his skull off the ground that the Kensai arrives at his breaking point, his left hand splaying out against the ground as he spied the next incoming strike. With a ferocity befitting the monster he is, the Kensais lurches forth from the ground, body arching so that he can interpose his gaping maw into the path of Ignatius wrist- the force of the blow enough to split Kasyrs mouth into a morbid sanguine smirk. Still, positioned as he is, there's very little to prevent the Revenant from trying to grind his teeth through decaying flesh and bone. More to the point, with his left hand free, there's not a lot to stop him from forcing himself up into an awkward crouch, if only so he hop back, in an attempt to land upon the Knight he's 'grappled' with, in an attempt to start snapping limbs.

Ignatius had lost his awareness of which way was up and which way was down, the confusion of their tumble blurring the world that surrounded them. But Ignatius was not interested in that world but rather the vampire that was held directly in front of him at all times by their combined grapples. When that bite landed upon his wrist, instinct drove Ignatius to thrust his arm towards himself in a motion that would draw his own elbow towards Kasyr's cheek and jaw. It would be this very same motion that gave Ignatius' form momentum to spin in an attempt to reverse the end-result of this situation. In short, he was trying to catch the vampire across the cheek with an elbow while using the force of that motion to position himself in such a way that he would land on top of Kasyr rather than vice versa before either had managed to land from their tumble whatsoever.