Long Lost Leaves

[Coffeehouse]

Äyenthil smiled
"Perhaps you should stop stalling and put your sword where your mouth is. I will make it swift on you, since you know not what you have gotten yourself into"

[Aikanáro]

Tabrîl smirked as Quickleaf threatened her. There was no need to take his words seriously, he would not live long enough for such a thing to become an issue. Abasi would see to that.

She looked round as Nami spoke again, but merely made a dismissive gesture. Abasi had not asked her to leave, and so she would watch, and ensure the other uwindi did not try to interfere. It would soon be over.

[Curufin]

'You overestimate yourself if you think this fight will be easy. Underestimating one's enemy is a dangerous habit. The enemy deserves respect, especially if they are one you have not previously fought. Overconfidence is the enemy of vigilance, and vigilance is how you win. It is often the overconfident who finds himself felled.'

Abasi drew his sword and matched it to Quickleaf's. It was not, perhaps, as shiny as the sword that his adversary bore, but it was well used, and the ancient handle was molded by hours of practice to the shape of Abasi's hand. It was a sword with which Abasi felt comfortable, a sword that was an extension of himself in more ways than one. It perhaps did not impress with its worth or its shine, but it had won him many honours, while his tribe had wandered the east, and brought much glory to his in'kasha. It was, to him, worth far more than the jewelled and shiny hilt of Quickleaf's.

[Mari]

Ellysa was dreaming. She was back in the streets running, always running. They were coming closer. She ran out of the alley into the street. She almost got trampled by a horse. The warrior on top of it swung his sword, but she was able to duck away. Screaming she ran into another alley. The warrior couldn't follow on his horse, but the others would follow shortly.
Ellysa hid herself under a crate and saw people running by, yelling directions and asking others if they had found her yet.

Slowly the noises were muffled, the people gone. She got up from under the crate and was back in the village. It was burning, but between the houses two warriors were standing opposite each other. They were standing still. Nothing moved and there seemed to be no sound. Suddenly they sprang forward. Ellysa ran towards them. She knew these warriors. They ought not fight each other. Time slowed down as she got burned, trying to reach the men who swung their scimitars. Blood, screams of despair and of pain. Her own screams.

She woke up, still screaming, her old wounds burning.

[feawen]

Watching the slow show of manness, Nami was serously thinking about firing an arrow at both of them, at the moment it seemed Quickleafs ego and pride was as big as Abasi's.

Ellysa scream broke her thoughts and her attension. Turning to the sound she saw Ellysa screaming. A strange dreaming look was in her eyes. Nami know the feeling of a waking nightmare. To wake up from the terror yet still feel its effects. Standing up she went over to the screaming girl, Kneeling in front of her, taking her hands.

"Shush, its ok, its just a dream."

[Coffeehouse]

Äyenthil gazed attentively at Abasi, holding his eyes, not his blade. First lesson. But the will to fight seemed to be ebbing in Abasi. The elf had made no move, had made no initiative. Kept talking. Was it a tactic? Äyenthil was curious now.

But he would not make the first move. This was not his initiation, not his challenge. If the elf wanted to shed blood, he'd have to get past Äyenthil first. Even if it meant death. Yet suddenly Ellysa let out a scream on his far left, and Nami seemed to be rushing over. Äyenthil flinched.

He then shot a glance over at Radaghast, who seemed to have taken the best seat for the fight, beneath a tree, careless.

Looking back at Abasi, Äyenthil spoke
"Whatever you decide to do, I await."

[Curufin]

The time for words was over. This strange uwindi - was it m'haid? - did not listen to his words.

Raising his sword, he attacked with a controlled speed, leaving no openings for Quickleaf to injure him. He began slowly, knowing that this could be a long and drawn-out fight.

[Coffeehouse]

The sound of blade cutting air sent adrenaline pumping through Äyenthil, and he almost stumbled backwards as Abasi came at him, deflecting the blow, but letting the elf go past him.
Äyenthil spun on his heel and swung his blade downwards towards the side of Abasi's knee, while bending slightly backwards so that he may parry the next blow.

[Curufin]

But Abasi had judged the distance well - as thousands of years of practice made easy - and was never in danger of Quickleaf's blade. He moved his leg out of danger seconds before the other's sword swept the place where it had been, and pivoted, turning around to face him yet again, his eyes hard and focused.

He met Quickleaf's sword, pressing the blades against him, closing the distance between them.

[Coffeehouse]

Äyenthil spotted Abasi's tactic, and set his foot down hard next to Abasi's, pushing upwards with his sword, knicking the elf hard in the face with his forehead before leaping backwards.

[Mari]

Ellysa looked wide-eyed at Nami, who was holding her hands.
Absentmindedly she answered Nami.
"Just a dream? No, dreams of memories long buried. My scars hurt."

Her arms were still burning and she was thinking she best put them in water when she heard the sound of swords clashing. For a moment she was back in her dream, but then she realized it was a sound in reality.
Aghast she looked towards the noise to see Abasi and Quickleaf fighting.

"Nami, what...!?"

[Curufin]

Abasi staggered back, appalled at the use of dishonourable tactics. He glared at his opponent, his respect for his fighting skills having taken a considerable downturn.

'You do not wish to play by the rules, then?' he hissed, coming at him now with a stronger and more forceful - though legal - attack.

[Coffeehouse]

"Fight like a man" Äyenthil hissed, fainting left, pulling right, throwing weight with his hilt into Abasi's elbow, leaving his sword shaking.

[feawen]

"Dreams of memory. You're not the only one. I swore its this evil place."

Hearing the renewed sound of sword on sword Nami turned her head slightly to look at them. She saw Quickleaf in a new light now and she wasn't sure if she liked it. No she liked Quickleaf it was Äyenthil she didn't like.

"Well the short vision is... they hate each other. Abasi said something, Quickleaf said something, Abasi wouldn't do the dishes, i've given up trying to stop them killing each other...Oh and now Quickleafs' called Äyenthil". Nami shrugged. "Dont know why".

[Curufin]

Abasi avoided Quickleaf's feint easily, stepping back until the other elf was out of reach. 'Like a man?' he asked, derision dripping from his voice. 'And what would one such as you know of that?'

He brought his booted foot down hard on Quickleaf's foot, likely breaking bones as he pushed him forward, bringing his sword hard against the blade of the other.

[Coffeehouse]

Äyenthil saw Abasi's foot shooting down at him, and being wrong-footed, settled for the blow. Pain seared through it, but the leather-padding neatly dampened the blow. Wounded feet weren't going to help him.

The elf forced his sword against his, and as his weight was on his stampling foot, Äyenthil knicked him again, hard on the nose, blood spraying the air, Äyenthil's arm continued the motion going up and then down with the gleaming blade slashing into Abasi's right shoulder.

Äyenthil watched the elf lose balance. But did nothing. Waited.

[Curufin]

Abasi caught his balance, and slashed his sword forward, keeping his calm, though his eyes gleamed colder than before. His sword met soft flesh on Quickleaf's stomach, slicing a wound an inch and a half thick through his abdomen. His shoulder burned with the pain of Quickleaf's point, but he clenched his teeth and defeated the pain.

Switching his sword to his left hand, he brought the broadside of the blade hard against Quickleaf's chest, forcing him back before bringing his blade in a slicing motion across his opponent's sword hand, feeling a twinge of satisfaction as he saw the red from the spurting blood staining Quickleaf's flashy sword.

[Coffeehouse]

Äyenthil shot out his tongue and licked his teeth bitterly. The pain thundered through his stomach, sending shockwaves to his heart.

Abasi did a second blow down on his wrist, but it was a mere scratch, his hilt reddening by the deep-red blood streaming onto it.

[feawen]

Nami wanted to stop this endless fighting but she didn't know how to. Instead she had got up and gathered things to sooth Ellysa hurting arms. One eye on Ellysa's old wounds, the other on the two men.

[Curufin]

Abasi watched calmly from several steps back as Quickleaf feinted and stabbed at something that apparently did not exist.

The bloodloss... he thought with a mixture of concern and amusement as Quickleaf shoved an arrow angrily into an innocent poplar tree. It is affecting him greatly, I see... coming up behind the hallucinating elf, he pushed him forward, causing him to lose his balance. Abasi hoped he would land on his sword.