Tournament Arc! Vlithra Qing Long vs Asterion Khryseos

[Vlithra Qing Long]

Vlithra had always been the competitive type, so when the Beacon Pep Rally was announced she was obviously pretty stoked to finally get to tangle with the best at Beacon. She had, after all, made her presence and capabilities very clear, especially among the first years. However once she heard that she was going to fight Aster again in her first round, the fire inside her was fueled further by the chance to settle the score with the guy. Vlithra never liked settling things on a draw, so it was with deadly seriousness that she entered the Arena for her match, only vaguely looking around the audience until her paralysing gaze fell onto the bull boy as he approached from the other side.

“What are the odds? Didn‘t think we‘d have our rematch this way, Aster.“ While Vlithra greeted him in a casual manner at first, it was the only relaxed motion the bull boy was going to get, as Vlithra then got into a battle ready stance, feet firmly planted on the ground and her hands on her favored sword ready to draw it. He was a great guy that shared similar tastes and interests with her, but a fight is a fight. Tension was already building as her jacket and hair suddenly lifted as if carried by a small gust of wind.
“Nothing personal, but I won‘t be holding back this time.“
Her eyes, slowly starting to glow, now narrowed and locked on Aster as she waited for the inevitable countdown and buzzer that would signal the match.

Vlithra was confident, but in other situations where this confidence would have her take this more leisurely, in this case it had her sort of nervous. She knows, had she been taking the guy seriously last time she‘d have won that encounter, but who knows what Aster had cooked up, since they had last fought.

[Asterion Khryseos]

While hunting Grimm was one of Aster's favourite pastimes - if not his favourite outright - he couldn't deny that there was something special about taking on something a little smarter. Grimm could be clever, but at their heart, the ones he faced were all savage beasts driven primarily by hunger. Their habits could be learnt, their patterns recognised. But a human? They weren't just primal strength, bites, and haymakers. There was strategy, ammo, excitement - all things that got adrenaline coursing through his veins at the mere thought of. It was no wonder, then, that he'd signed up to take part in the tourney Beacon had put on.

But what truly got him excited was the name he saw written next to his. Vlithra was not a person he could forget easily, after all. Theirs had been a battle that had given him a thrill quite unlike anything he'd experienced before, save for against the most ferocious of Menagerie's wildlife and Grimm. If there was anyone that could give him a good fight, it was her. He couldn't even attempt to hide the broad grin on his face as he lumbered into the arena, his eyes aflame with barely-restrained passion, and anticipation for the melee that was about to ensue.

"Trust me," he said back through clenched teeth, "I'd be disappointed if you did." Aster wanted nothing but the best from her - anything less, and it wouldn't be a fight that he cared about remembering. It was clear that he was expecting something even more heated than the last time, too. From the excitement in his voice, to the white-knuckled grip he held on his axe as he readied himself into a fighting stance, he left no room for doubt - this was something that he'd been hoping for ever since that fateful day in class.

He waited with bated breath for that buzzer to go.

[Vlithra Qing Long]

The very moment that klaxon sounded, Vlithra flared up in her semblances signature green glow, sparks wildy flying around her body like an out of control tesla coil. With a thunderous crackle, louder than the buzzer itsself, Vlithra needed but make a singular step forward, her foot cracking the ground beneath from the sheer amount of power in her step, as she suddenly wasn‘t where she stood anymore. Like a flash of actual lightning she had catapulted herself right in front of Aster, reeling her body back and lifting her leg for a devestating semblance enhanced kick to the upper body that would surely send even someone as big and massive as him flying towards the edge of the arena. Using her legs like this did put a strain on her, but it wasn‘t as painfull as using her fists. Besides, with Aster knocked back she wouldn‘t need to move for her next move anyway. However, it might not be enough to ring the bull boy out in one go at the moment. Though, it did mean she was one step closer from doing so.

Her strategy seemed simple, ring Aster out as quickly a possible. Vlithra didn‘t favor this strategy over a good scrap, however she knew that if she fought like last time this will most likely end in another draw. And during a tournament, she wasn‘t going to take any chances.

With Aster sent closer to the border, the tigress pulled a water dust cartridge from her holster and inserted it into her blade to instantly pull it, the blade figuratively drowning in a deep blue hue. She then slashed the blade across the ground, particles of water sprinkling out of the ground before she spun around once more, reeled back and stabbed towards Aster from afar. The moment she did, a powerful torrent of water shot towards the bull boy, with terrifying force strong enough to push him back further if he didn‘t dodge. It would leave Vlithra with one more charge of the dust, before she would need to change.

[Asterion Khryseos]

Dense as he was, Aster wasn't stupid - at least, when it came to fights, rather than anything of a scholarly nature. The second that klaxon rang out, he braced himself, his Semblance ready. It wouldn't do much - not against the onslaught he wasn't nearly fast enough to dodge - but he could at least tank it and push back. He grunted out as his muscles strained to keep him from staggering out of the arena before the match truly began, and with every fibre of his being, he somehow managed to weather the storm. But there was yet more to come, and he righted himself in the blink of an eye, ready to meet it too.

It didn't take much for him to put two and two together, and see why she'd sprayed the ground. Wetter flooring made for slippery footing - and with his Semblance still winding up, it only made things worse for him. But she wasn't the only one with some tricks up her sleeve. With a motion so fluid and practised that it was finished in the blink of an eye, he slammed an Earth shell into the barrel, and fired straight at the floor. The barrier didn't grow much, and it didn't last long - the spire that rose from the ground was too narrow to block much. But it was enough.

With the brunt of the blow deflected, Aster barrelled forwards, the bellowing cry of a berserker erupting from him as he charged. He bore down on her like a true bull - a solid wall of strength and sinew, swinging with power enough to eviscerate lesser men. She wasn't the only one that could push, and he sure as hell wasn't going to let her knock him out this early.

[Vlithra Qing Long]

Aster did in fact manage to not suffer a direct hit from the water stream barreling toward him, thanks to his timely placement of a slender spire of earth. And as expected, once he weathered the first strike he went onto the offensive charging forward with a resounding battle cry. It was well within Vlithra‘s game plan for Aster to do so and its exactly what she needed him to do, come at her. She could match the guy easily at the start. It was later on that he would be a problem. Her water would assist greatly in that case, allowing her semblance to have greater effect. However she needed to keep him in the area for this, so it was with her own warrior‘s cry that she charged forward.

Trading one for the other, she sheathed Talon to bring out Naraka just as Aster swung his Axe with all his might. As Vlithra drew her favored blade from the sheath ready for a clash, the blades figuratively crashed into each other with a loud and satisfying shockwave that could shake eardrums, with Vlithra still pushed back momentarily as she couldn‘t quite match this strength along with the guys momentum, at least not without her semblance powering her up which she chose not to. no reason to put such a strain on her body yet, however this wasn‘t good, they needed to stay in the watery area...

The water beneath splashed as Vlithra then dashed to the side to meet his powerful swings there and go around him. Once again the sound of clashing steel rang out throughout the arena as it became an arythmic cacophany with fighters swinging at each other in combination with the splashing of water as Vlithra directed their dance back towards the stone spire. The tigress was playing a dangerous game, trying to lure Aster towards the edge like this.

[Asterion Khryseos]

Aster was relentless. Each strike was like lightning itself - swift and powerful, devastating whatever lay beneath it. The fact that he'd managed to push her back little by little only served to encourage him, with his lips twisting into a savage grin, more akin to a beast baring its fangs than a man indulging in the thrill of battle. And though he noticed the water drenching the ground, and that she was pushing him back, it never occurred to him to care. All he could focus on was the fight, and raining brutal blows down on her. If he couldn't ring her out, he'd break her through brute force.

But brute force wasn't the only thing that he had waiting for her. He stepped back, just a little, and created just enough of a gap for him to break away and level Chimera's barrel at her face. Not even a metre away, the trigger was pulled, but no buckshot emerged. It was Fire Dust that - when triggered - emerged in a white-hot tongue flame. The heat wasn't the only thing it was good for though. With how bright it was, there was a reason he'd aimed at her eyes. But he didn't stop to check if it'd worked, instead hurtling forward against her, bringing the axe swinging in from the side, as if to try and cleave her in two.

[Vlithra Qing Long]

Aster really wasn‘t pulling any punches. His swings struck with incredible force against Vlithras blade. Yet he was still enjoying it, as if he knew he was way too much in his element to worry about loosing. Let‘s see how lang that would last when Vlithra was ready with executing her strategy, water and positioning weren‘t her only weapons here.

A change in Asters approach had the tigress immediately on her guard as he raised his weapons barrel at Vlithras face. It didn‘t matter what exactly was going to come out of that barrel, Vlithra wasn‘t going to let this payload reach her unhindered, be it dust or buckshot. She pulled Talon like a dagger from its sheath and swung it upwards, activating the last charge of water dust within it. Just as the water was dispensed from the blade carried by the upward motion to build a wall of water, her eyes were blinded by Asters own payload, a bright flame. As the water rose in between the tigress and the spew of flames coming towards her, she staggered backwards, clearly momentarily blinded, she rubbed her eyes shortly with her sleeve. The water instantaneously evaporated with the steam figuratively exploding from the collision of the two elements. Now this was just inconvenient, but… if her intuition was anything to go by it wouldn‘t take long for...

...the axe head of Lustrous Chimera to come barelling out of the steam in a sideways swing at the hip. Vlithras eyes had just recovered from the brightness assailing them just as she saw the steel come barreling towards her. She had figured Aster wouldn‘t let her get any breathing room, but blinding a target and then swinging, this was something new from the big lug. She had to get him just a bit further now, but first she had to make sure this didn‘t hit her square on.

Her legs suddenly were fueled with her semblance lightning and in but a moment before the blade would have crashed into the tigresses side, it hit nothing but air as Vlithra catapulted herself, low to the ground, backwards away from the danger just past the stone spire where her momentum was stopped by her sword digging into the ground and staggered. It almost felt ironic that she was now around where Aster stood but a few moments prior. It made it seem like she was the one on the backfoot, yet she didn‘t let that thought deter her, she had a plan to execute. Aster should need a moment to get to her, so she could make some preperations. She ejected the used dust cartridge and sheathed her blade, only to take out and insert another… Ice. She now just needed to get Aster in the right position.

[Asterion Khryseos]

A swing and a miss. Aster cursed quietly - he was sure that it would hit, especially after blasting her at near-point blank range. But it wasn't something he dwelt on. He had to recover before she had a chance to strike again, and with a weapon like his, that left him open. It was for all of a second, before he leapt forward again to try and carve her apart, but it was just enough that she had time to slot that cartridge in without him being able to do a thing to stop her. Not that he cared much to try.

The sound of heavy metal striking through the air filled the arena, accompanied by the savage grunts of the man swinging it at Vlithra. He was utterly relentless, like an animal bearing down on its prey, looking to tear it into little more than shreds. All he saw was that she was on the backfoot, and that if he pushed just a little more, he could crack her Aura open like glass. Some might have called it focus, but the wiser among them would have seen it for what it truly was: Aster blinding himself to everything but the target.

Including the arena's state.

[Vlithra Qing Long]

And Asters attack continued, like a bull blind with rage, relentless and ever strong, each hit seemingly stronger than the last as their weapons collided in an almost dance like rythm. Vlithra needing to step back with each collision, almost jumping back due to the force Aster creates with each clash, it was terrifying to know that by now she could barely hope to deter the guys weapon when he swung it. However she didn‘t need to anymore, as once Vlithra was near enough the arenas edge she suddenly flared up in green lightning again and bursted forward, throwing her body weight back to slide across the wet floor well past the fervently attacking bull with a fiendish grin looking up at the guy. While sliding, she pulls her dust charged blade again and rams it into the floor, the water on the ground suddenly freezing solid as the blade cuts through the ground and brings Vlithra to a halt again. The ice begins gripping at and climbing up Asters boots, the water providing enough material to freeze him in place for a moment, effectively putting this bull on ice…

Pushing herself of the ground Vlithra yanks Carnassial Talon out of the ground and swings it, first to the left of Aster then to his right, waves of large ice spikes growing out of the ground in the respective directions. One more stab into the ground discharges the remaining dust inside the cartridge of the sword, as the spikes raise further up and in the end make a solid wall around Aster in the form of a V, with Vlithra herself standing on top of it at the tip. With the bull now caged and literally cornered, it was with a wicked grin that Vlithra went on the attack. She sheathes Viridan Naraka momentarily and jumps straight at Aster, swinging her weapons from the sheath as she reaches him, the green electrified blade crackled through the air as the tigress now bore down at what was her cornered prey.

[Asterion Khryseos]

He felt himself slowing, but all too late did he realise why that was. Limbs locking, skin chilling, and weapon becoming still, it became clear that he'd allowed himself to fall into her trap. He'd have cursed at her, had the ice wrapped around him not kept him from so much as twitching his jaw at her. He was frozen solid, and with what little Aura he still had in the tank, detonating his Semblance would either leave him dry or down in a single hit. He was trapped, cornered, and staring defeat in the face. Bleak as things were though, it wasn't over yet. Bellowing out with a savage roar to the heavens, he used whatever strength he could summon to push against the ice, forcing it to crack and crumble as his body began to shift and shake once more.

Second by second, inch by inch, his body began to move, and the ice began to fall away from his body. All he needed was a little more time, a little more strength... but what he needed was more than he could bring to bear. The ice on his arm shattered into glittering powder and crystals, flying out as it reeled back to swing his axe down, but he was seconds too late. Titanic force struck him like a storm to the centre of his chest, and with a great cry of pain, Aster found himself flying back, his Semblance overwhelmed.

He swung down, trying to anchor himself while his feet tried to find stable ground. Stone, ice, and dust flew into the air, as if belching up from the great crevasse he'd formed in the floor. With all his might, he willed himself down, slowing himself until he could finally force himself forward. The dust settled, and amidst the rubble, the man stood with his back to the edge... and his foot slid past the threshold.

[Vlithra Qing Long]

The ice was doing all the work necessary to keep Aster exactly where Vlithra needed him. When her attack struck the bull boy it was with terrific glee that she looked after his body being rocketed through the air towards the edge of the arena, the green electric trail of her blade crackling in a satisfying afterglow of the strike. Slamming his weapon down to try and come to a halt wasn‘t a bad move on his part and it prompted the tigress to keep up the offensive game, charging her semblance for another strike. She sprinted with heavy steps after him, semblance lightning dancing around her body to continue her assault, breaking the ice sheet beneath her as to not loose friction and barreling through the wall of dust that had risen in his wake…

Then that mighty buzzer sounded, giving Vlithra all the reason she needed to come to a momentary halt herself amidst the crevice and kicked up smoke and rubble. As her vision cleared it was crystal why the fight had ended, Aster had been forced out of bounds therefore making him lose the match through ring-out. A result that, thanks to her careful planning of this particular fight, was all the more satisfying. With a grin Vlithra sheathed her blade and relaxed her body, a little shockwave going outwards dispersing the rest of the lingering smoke around her and dusting off her clothing. She stood there for a moment, giving Aster time to recuperate before slowly making her way towards him.
“Well fought.“ she says to Aster with a proud grin as she extends her hand to him.

[Asterion Khryseos]

Aster was, at first, bitter. He'd been so close to being able to reach his Semblance's apex, and so close to cleaving her apart - to grasping victory. But by a literal foot, he'd lost the match, and through a ringout no less. Those looking closely enough at him might have seen the clenched jaw and hardened look in his eyes as he stepped back into bounds, dusting himself off and slinging his axe back over his back once the empty shell had been ejected. But, the second he saw that outstretched hand, whatever bitterness had been present vanished like the wind.

He'd lost the match, yes. But he couldn't deny that it'd been a hard-fought one, and the most fun he'd had in ages. The adrenaline surging through his veins, the sound of ringing steel, the smell of spent Dust lingering in the air amidst what little fog and dirt still hung upon it... As much as he regretted not being able to win, he didn't regret the fight at all. He took her hand firmly, and grinned broadly as he did so.
"And you." Was all he said, for there was little else to say. Their weapons hadn't just talked - they'd sung. And what a song it had been.