Another beautiful day in the training arena, another day for Annabelle to learn a thing or two about combat. With how much she had been fighting, she was sure to become a legendary warrior, if not at least one of great renown. Of course, to be a warrior known for their fighting prowess, Annabelle needed to actually fight, which was why she was here today.

Standing in the arena, Annabelle looked out at the assembled crowd in the stands. It seemed that she had indeed gained some notoriety amongst the spectators that frequented this place. Maybe this was how one became a legend? Hard to say, but it did feel nice to be appreciated. Maybe if she played her cards right and won this match, she would get her own fan club, an exciting prospect to be sure.

As the signal to begin hadn't be sounded yet, she was able to move into her stance and prepare for what was to come. Feet shoulder width apart, right elbow level with her shoulder, left elbow down to cover her gut, sword pointed towards opponent fifteen feet away from her. This would be her first time fighting against someone who possessed this kind of skill set, so it was sure to be a good learning experience for her. Of course she couldn't just prepare herself physically, she also had to take a more emotional approach towards preparing herself for this fight.

Golden psionic energy burst from her body in a small wave, the onyx amulet beneath her breast plate becoming darker for a moment as it collected the latent negative energy. Annabelle had used one of her Mantels of Awakening to activate a Memory of Courage, one where she stood up to her father and told him she did not want to be the daughter of an agricultural baron anymore. Through this action, her strength had been enhanced now, and she felt as if she were now truly ready to fight her opponent.

Now all that was left to do was to wait, both for her opponent to declare themselves ready and for the signal to be given. Once they had done so, they would give it their all, knowing that death was not a problem due to the advanced healers that work in this place. With that in mind, she would begin her strategy, knowing that each movement needed to be careful, nothing should be done wastefully. Everything she did needed to be towards the goal of victory, else she could end up making a mistake that cost her dearly.

It was a strange sensation that he had experienced. One moment he was working on the grounds at Concord Glenn and had decided to take a rest. His eyes closed and what seemed like barely moment passed. He opened his eyes again and he was within a brightly lit room that seemed to be underground, or at least under a very large structure. Around him were armor and weapons of all kinds. He took a moment to gather his surroundings and even inquired upon an armored individual to tell him where he was. He was in an arena, a gladiatory arena, and a man in robes quickly found him and had begun to explain everything that he needed to know. Finnegan was a bit out of his element but as he checked himself over he seemed to be alright, if only feeling a bit odd. He was told about his opponent and had the suggestion offered to him to armor up and grab a weapon of his choosing. He was currently wearing the blue jumpsuit that had the Concord Glenn logo on it, along with simple clothing under it for when he got off of work. He removed the jump suit and replaced it with a suit of hardened leather armor, something that wasn't too heavy but would still provide protection. It also allowed for the mobility that he was use too. The leather covered the important bits of his chest area.

The major muscles of his arms and legs were also covered and protected, making sure to wear padding under the armor. He didn't wear a helmet which allowed his blonde, tossled, hair to sit freely upon his head. He pulled off his glasses and left them with his things. Instead he pulled his contact lenses from one of the pockets of his word uniform and placed them into his eyes, blinking a few times to make sure they were secure, and then moved over to the weapon wrack. He grabbed what seemed to be a longsword. It had a 43 inch long blade with a cruciform hilt and a black handle with a round pommel, a grip that could be used with one or two hands. He swung the weapon through the air a few times to get use to it. Hand to hand combat was his forte but he had worked with weapons before. Holding it at his side he started to make his way through the underbelly of the arena and eventually made his way out to the central fighting pit. When he had initially arrived he was greeted by a raucous chorus of cheering and screaming people that filled the insurmountable number of stands around him. His grieves dug into the dirt slightly as he made his way into the center of the arena opposite the side of his opponent, which was a woman with pointy ears.

It seemed that he had somehow wound up in a fantasy world.

He took to the center and watched as his opponent took up their stance and then summoned forth a power. He figured that this was their particular form of Chi. The golden energy that ran over her body seemed to have a strengthening effect of some sort. He took a deep breath and summoned forth one of his own abilities. Insight of the Leaves. He studied her form, movements, how the energy played upon her body and would work to discern what affect the energy had upon her body.

His right foot slid back behind his left, his left arm stayed in the front while his right held held the sword at his side angled slightly so that it crossed in front of his chest. His left hand had remained opened and he moved to the balls of his feet instead of staying flat footed upon the ground.

"I'm Finnegan. Lets try not to kill each other, at the very least." He said with a thick Irish accent.

Another opponent, and this one looked to know what they were doing. Annabelle studied his stance for a moment, thinking on what she should open with. One wrong move could cost her dearly, so she wanted to make certain she did the right choice. With the thought of charging forward not sitting well with her, she decided to go with a more cautious approach. In this place, it never hurt to try and keep your hide intact if you could help it.

“Do not be afraid” she said as she began to circle on his left “the healers here are quite skilled.” Perhaps she could find a hole in his defense, force him to break his stance in order to engage her, then strike in an opening. “I once had a large spike of green gem lodged in my neck, but the healers were able to remove it without killing me.” The scar still throbbed sometimes, but it was a worthy mark of her victory over the spellsword she fought. “Though it helps to still show restraint, as this is just a practice field.”

As she spoke, Annabelle placed a second Mantle of Awakening upon a Memory of Courage. Golden psionic energy burst through her body in between sentences, and she could feel her strength surging. With enough luck and skill it would win her the day, but she needed to be careful. This man did not wish to kill her, but in this place, anything was possible. If Annabelle wanted to become a warrior of legendary renown, she would need to be able to defeat any opponent that came her way. Her dreams were lofty, but she was a talented swordswoman with nothing left to lose.

The crowd watched in silence, the cheering having died off now as they waited for the carnage to begin. At the mention of her previous injury, some of the spectators would chatter about the fight. It was a rather intense and grueling match, one that had people at the edge of their seat. Today it seemed they were hoping for another such match, finding the thrill of gladiatorial combat to their liking. Death wasn't certain amongst the competitors, but if they could see another gruesome injury, then it made it all the more worth it. Not since the death of Selandra Windfall has there been such an emphasis on keeping the combatants alive, as her body has been lost due to unforeseen circumstances, making it impossible to revive her.

@Tristwich

The roar of the crowd slowly subsided within the arena. Don't be afraid? That was something that kept one alive. IIt didn't matter where he fought or who he fought, there was always some fear lurking within the back of his mind. Especially when it came to someone that he had never fought before. One wrong move could wind up ending his time for good, being the human that he was. He narrowed his eyes in response. As she started to circle to his left Finnegan moved to his right so that he maintained his position in front of her and kept the distance between them the same, he wasn't going to let her flank him when it was just the two of them. He knew about the healers and how good they were, he was informed about what he needed to know when he wound up in this place, but still dind't find much comfort in the fact that he could die and they'd just simply bring him back to life. He maintained his stance as he walked, blade held diagonally across his body with his left arm held in a defensive position. She wasn't attacking, she was studying him. Once more that golden energy flashed across her body. He studied her form in these few moments that they had.

Enhancements had their tells most of the time. The way the body moved was prone to changing subtly as an increase in strength caused the wielder of it to adjust how they were moving, they didn't want to move too far too fast because of their added power. A strengthening of the body through a defensive enhancement would apply more resistance to armor pressing down upon the skin. Increased speed and reflexed might be shown through faster movement of the eyes, albeit subtle, as they took in everything around them as if it were being viewed in a slower rate of motion. Everything had a tell and he was looking for it. His own passive enhancement, Insight of the Leaves, made this a lot easier than it normally would have been.

Frankly if she wasn't going to be the one to start things then he figured it was going to be him, she seemed to be taking a strong defensive stance in this encounter. He slowly continued to circle with her until their positions were reversed, where he would be standing where she started and she would be standing where he had started, then he started to move toward her. He didn't run toward her but he did advance at a steady pace. The fifteen foot gap was closed to a ten foot one and then down to a 7 foot one. When he was at this seven foot distance he took a step forward like he was about to charge, pulling his sword back with the tip pointing out to his right side like he was winding up for a swing. After he took that step forward, sword primed and ready to strike once he closed the distance, he dropped it low. He hoped the feint worked and she would start to move to counter his charge. What he did instead was plant his left foot forward in that step, rooting his stance while bending his knees, while his sword swung down toward the dirt covered floor of the arena fighting pit. The tip of his sword cleaved into the floor with the edge that he then turned so that the flat faced Annabelle.

What happened as his blade swung forward was a spray of soil and earth firing toward her, aiming specifically for the face in an attempt to blind her temporarily. As a grounds keeper and landscaper he knew how much force was needed to launch the packed soil beneath his feet, all he had to do was walk on it a bit. The distraction needed to work only for a moment as he rushed forward as she would be dealing with the spray of dirt. He closed that seven foot distance to a rough four foot one. His right arm pulled back, bent at the elbow sharply, to bring the point of the longsword in line with his opponent. Hi sword was thrust forward toward the shoulder joint of her sword wielding arm, aiming to penetrate through the armor she wore and find a gap, in an attempt to hinder her sword play. He figured she'd be better with a weapon than himself so he tried to take that away from her, or at least make it harder for her to wield one. As per his stance his left leg was still in the lead, facing her with his left side closer than his right, with most of his weight at the moment even spread between both legs. He was ready to move when he reacted even if he didn't know what she was going to do.