2914/WMAT B1 Lucatiel vs Courier Six

WMAT B1 Lucatiel vs Courier Six
Date of Scene:	28 August 2015
Location:	Papaya Island - Stadium
Synopsis:	The Knight runs roughshod over Johnny, eliminating the Courier from the Tournament
Cast of Characters:	32, 66

---

Courier Six (32) has posed:
    And here we are. The start of Bracket B Round of 32 action. The largest chunk of Elites in the tournament, all vying for the right to glory and championship. And today is promising to be a show. The crowd loves a show, everyone loves a show, and the stadium is packed as the two competitors take the field.

    One of them is a former champion himself, a three time winner in the tournament so far, and ready to keep moving forward. He just also happens to be the representative for one of the major sponsors.

    And those sponsors have asked Johnny Tallbranch to wear something else today. And so he's out here, out of that heavy riot gear, out of the helmet and all of that. Instead, he's wearing a simple duster with the logo of the Lucky 38, a cowboy hat, a pair of bandoliers at his hips, and a smile on his gruff face. A cheery wave up at the crowds as he waits for the match to be announced, waits for the festivities and introductions to be completed.

    He works on a wad of gum in his cheek and soaks it all in. "By god this is going to be a spectacle."

Lucatiel of Mirrah (66) has posed:
Standing opposite the cowboy is the Masked Knight. She is no newcomer to the tournament, either, although if she has any admirers in the audience, she pays them no mind whatsoever. Her attention is fixed on the Courier, studying him in aloof silence. No pandering to the crowd; no acknowledgement of the spectators.

The mask conceals her features completely, but there's no mistaking that beneath the broad-brimmed hat, her attention is fixed on her opponent.

With arms folded and armour in varying weights of leather and silk shirt, it's hard to tell whether the Masked Knight is a man or a woman, although the knight's long blonde hair hangs down their back, neatly braided. A woman, perhaps, albeit one of solid build.

The head tilts momentarily to the nearest screen that might show a time, before drawing the slender estoc scabbarded at her waist. The blade is given an experimental pass, flicked neatly, and then pointed straight at Courier Six.

The gesture is unmistakable:

Let's go.

Courier Six (32) has posed:
    The Courier's scruffy face beams as the Knight's 'come get me' gesture is made, and he grins. "The name's Jonathan Tallbranch, Lady Knight. And it's very nice to meet you." Honest, happy drawl there, as one hand and then the other drops to his waist and inside of the duster. He comes out with a pair of very fancy looking revolvers, shiney and detailed and looking well maintained. The oiled cylinders click into place and he rattles off a burst of shots in the direction of his Mysterious Opponent.
    "Let's dance!" Those dark eyes of his sparkle, and h lets the crowd and the arena around him melt into the background, his entire being focused forward at this moment.

Lucatiel of Mirrah (66) has posed:
There's no response, at least nothing verbal, because the Masked Knight is intently watching her opponent. She's studying him, taking in his every move in an effort to discern what his style is; what his favoured tactics must be. Firearms; guns. That's going to make things more difficult--

The shots rip into her forearm as she twists out of the way, the blue cloth draped through her belt flaring at the sudden movement, braid whipping behind her. There's a spatter of blood left behind on the arena grid, staining the polished surface. First blood, but that doesn't necessarily determine the battle. Not if she can help it.

Using her momentum, she lunges forward, tucking into a roll that brings her up behind Courier Six, reversing the blade to shove it backward toward the Cowboy Courier's back -- a neat reverse thrust, using the palm of her free hand against the pommel to give it a little extra kick.

Courier Six (32) has posed:
    Well he didn't expect anything less here. He's usually the only one properly bringing guns to these fights, but... The Courier grumbles as the Knight dodgerolls out of the way of his attacks, and he fails to turn in time to keep up with her. Stupid I-Frames.

    At least he's got enough time to manage to twist into that stabbity stab, the blade of the estoc slipping through the leather of his duster. He lurches awkwardly and growls, tugging himself free and casting a similar spatter of blood on that blade.

    The revolver comes up again, Johnny's hand already casting an empty speedloader towards the arena floor. He lifts the gun, and fires off a few more measured shots.

Lucatiel of Mirrah (66) has posed:
Measured shots are an entirely different matter than the testing shots of an opening battle. Despite her attempt to throw herself sideways, Lucatiel has no choice but to take those hits, rather than taking them somewhere less pleasant. At least two bullets lodge themselves into the armour over her shoulder, and to go by the way her mouth twists sharply, at least one of them finds its mark.

The Courier is a ranged opponent, that much is obvious, and so the best she can do is to try and deny him that advantage. Charging forward in spite of the risk, Lucatiel whips the estoc around and attempts to ram it into Courier's shoulder -- intent, apparently, on disarming him. Literally.

Courier Six (32) has posed:
    The Courier's shots land square and he grins in appreciation that at least this person is not being snippy about the fights. Though... Quite the opposite.

    For once there's someone taking them just as seriously as him. A little twitch of a grin, even as a hand comes up to try and parry that incoming stab- And Johnny misses, getting both a slice down his leather gloves as well as a sword through his shoulder. He's already dropped both pistols at this point and growls. There's... a mechanical sound inside of him as he shoves forward and then slides back and away, rolling away from the sword and letting it slip out with a spray of not entirely all human blood. A cyborg of some sort?

    He chuckles, wipes off his stained shirt and swats a hand into his coat again. This time it comes out with somehting a littel heavier. A blockey, chunky, silver pistol that looks like someone ripped a piece of industrial gear from a fab lab and turned it into a weapon. He pulls the trigger and rattles off a series of laser blasts.

Lucatiel of Mirrah (66) has posed:
At that mechanical sound, the knight hop-skips back a few steps in alarm. Those kinds of noises are usually never good, and while this man certainly looks human, she's beginning to have her doubts. Very blatant doubts, because no ordinary person ought to sound like that.

She jerks the estoc back, flicking the almost-blood from its blade with a twitch of one wrist. That silver pistol is also eyed warily, but her shield will be no good. It's going to be up to refl--

The laser lances right into and through the traced leather pauldron, leaving a neat, charred hole in it and the shoulder beneath it. Lucatiel spins away with a yelp of pain, immediately clapping a hand to the wound; but she mis-steps, sent sprawling by the unfortunate mishap. her voice, at least, is definitely a woman's, although a low and hard tone that isn't particularly feminine.

Also, kind of angry. That /hurt/. She's quick to pick herself up from the arena's smooth grid, shaking her head as though to clear it. No sooner is that done than she kicks off from the smooth floor, lunging forward with every intent to shove that estoc right through the Cowboy Courier's shoulder; with all the weight of her momentum behind it.

Courier Six (32) has posed:
    Johnny's only got a few moments to process all of that together before the Knight is already back and up to her feet and moving again. He snorts and growls, tossing out a few mistimed laser blasts before that estoc comes right up again, and he...
    He leans into it, leans into the shoulder strike, letting the sword sink right through the duster, his shoulder, through the other side in one hard go. Something crunches in his body as he's driven backwards to the ground and he snorts painfull, lying therewith the knight on top of him.

    "Hnnnng. Probably... a bad time... to flirt." He snorts, the middle-aged face breaking into a bloody smile. There's the sudden sound of materialisation next ot the knight and the Cowboy's hand shakes out. A knee comes up to kick Lucatiel off of his frame, sliiiiding that sword back out from his flash as he staggers and rolls backwards and starts firing That Gun, the big ass heavy one in his hands. The one that uses rifle ammo for cartdriges.

    You know The One."

Lucatiel of Mirrah (66) has posed:
The masked woman offers no response, even as she attempts to free herself from the Courier and disentangle her weapon. Before she has the opportunity, she's thrown off by a well-placed kick, and then sent further sprawling by the Big One.

Fortunately, she manages to twist, turning what should have been a show-stopper into an aggravating and painful inconvenience.

That also gives her the opportunity to advance again, quick and inexorable, flicking the estoc this way and that -- to feint once, twice; and then attempt to drive the weapon into Courier's shoulder, even as she curls a fist and makes every effort to plant it in his gut.

Courier Six (32) has posed:
    Johnny is already favoring that shoulder as it is, and as the Knight comes in again, he twists away from the attack, totally missing the incoming punch at his gut which winds him. "Hhnfffff."
    He grunts and sags over a bit, coughing up more blood... But a sly eye will catch him using the moment to jam a needle of some sort into his thigh. A hiss of injecting fluid and he straightens up again, slowly rolling that shoulder. "Now that's just plain dirty fightin'. Glad to see it."

    A grin, and he flicks his hand under his coat again, pulling out a staff from... somwhere, that Pip Boy flashing a warning on his arm. The tech-ish looking staff is heavy, hard and he brings it up to fend off that estoc, trying to land a combo of thusts and swats in at the Knight's midsection and face.

Lucatiel of Mirrah (66) has posed:
No sooner has the cowboy jammed a syringe into his thigh than the knight is back in his personal space, this time stepping closer to aim a sweeping kick at his ankles, but she can't follow through with the attack, because she's being beaten about the head and neck by some sort of bizarre technostaff.

Lucatiel snarls in pain as the blows rain down, but she makes no effort to dodge them. Instead, she attempts to get closer, this time to sweep another vicious kick at the Courier's ankles, and a sharp punch to his head with the pommel of the estoc, meant to put him down. Hopefully. Of course, it's never that easy.

Courier Six (32) has posed:
    The cowboy takes a few suffling steps backwards as he's driven back and back from her position, the staff trying to fend off the more experienced melee combatant. But it's tough, despite all the work he's done to train, it comes down to trying to have the superiror tech in a fight like this.

    Which is why he's tripped into a punch right at the side of his head. The cowboy hat finally flies out of the arena as he staggers at the edge of the stones, growling... And smiling. "Come on, pretty lady, ain't done dancin' yet." He slams the end of the staff into the ground to activate it, and a horrid purple-black flash of energy washes over the business end of the staff, turning it into a very long handled combat energy blade of some sort. This time he moves in, not just with staff strikes, but with the threat of the evil touch of that dark energy.
    A grim look in his eyes, as he knows he's got to step it up here or be knocked out.

Lucatiel of Mirrah (66) has posed:
As before, the courier's hopeful flirting is given no response whatsoever from Lucatiel. She does give the staff a hard look, although not much can be seen beneath the mask -- the way she freezes when she looks at it suggests she can recognise the taint, the wrongness, of that energy.

And then a laugh bubbles its way up from beneath that bronze and steel. It's sharp and bitter, and the amusement in it is a fierce, aggressive sort.

Curiously, she walks forward, accepting the blows; letting that evil energy roil around her. It hurts, and hurts fiercely, but it's still nothing in comparison to the taint she already carries.

"If you think to scare me with that, you will have to try harder." Her voice is hard and low.

The Cowboy Courier's determination is met with equal determination. Lucatiel surges forward into that storm of blows, only to unleash her own, trying to overpower him rather than win any contest of finesse.

Courier Six (32) has posed:
    The blade is wrong, but it still cuts like a blade should, despite the foul energy the Inversion Axe spits out. If she were a robot it would do even worse, but she's far too nimble for the cowboy to touch.
    There's somethign strangely comforting in the look he gives her. "Ain't trying to scare ya, just tryin ta BEAT YA." He braces himself, rocks back on his feet and-

    That Pip Boy -pings- once, a 'ready' noise if Lucatiel's ever heard one. And then there's a lurching of the Cowboy's frame. See, it's not just Lucatiel that's been studying. It's that Pip Boy, and now that its got the data it needs, Johnny's letting the machine take over.
    His limbs and legs and that axe move with preternatural grace, as he spins and twirls and steps in and starts hacking in at the Knight. But the motions are not entirely his own. There's MATH involved, as the Pip Boy is trying to calculate her responses in real time in order to place his blows perfectly.

Lucatiel of Mirrah (66) has posed:
The Masked Knight whirls, trying to get out of the way of that blade, but she has no capacity to move fast enough. The blows hammer down, calculated, but the knight pulls through on sheer willpower, though they must cost her. She snarls behind the mask.

Apparently she gives up on raw power, falling back on finesse once more. The estoc flicks in and out, quick as a striking serpent; seeking out weaker points in the duster to slip past the Courier's defenses. She herself whirls and moves as though dancing, fast and deadly as a cobra.

Courier Six (32) has posed:
    And really, it is all far too much for Johnny at this point. Snicker snack, slipping tips and points into flesh all start to show through the man's fancy outfit, his smile... not fading but showing less enthusiasm for himself at least. He's bleeding now, a mess on the stones of the arena and..

    He plants the base of the axe against the stones and snorts and holds up his hands. "All right, all right, you got me. A man knows when he's licked. But sakes, woman. WHy is it always swords ladies that put me out of this damn thing?"

    He's laughing now as he uses his axe-staff to lever himself up to a stand. "You win, sir."

Lucatiel of Mirrah (66) has posed:
The knight seems about to strike again, but... he yields, and props himself back up with that fearsome blade. It takes her a second or two to register that he's talking to her, and she looks up, mask and hat facing him directly.

Canting her head slightly to one side, she reaches up and pulls that magnificent hat off, although the mask remains on her face, and sweeps forward into an elegant, flourishing bow.

"I accept your yield." The hat is replaced as she straightens up again, turning as though to walk from the arena, although she pauses to glance over her shoulder. "You fought well, if that is any consolation. Perhaps we may meet again the next time."

And with that, if he has nothing more to say to her, she'll trudge from the arena, bleeding and sore, but still upright.

For now, anyway.