[Center] Alicia Le'roux-The Duel[/Center]
[Center] A Collab with Brovo[/Center]

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Alicia held the spear in her hand, smiling at the approaching amazons with an obvious glee. To the vampire, these battles were important: they were the precursors to her success, should they go well. Giving the spear an experimental swing, she couldn’t help but notice the blonde haired amazon, and her obvious disrespect towards Ethlinn. A brief snarl curtailed the vampire’s smile, and she flicked the tip of the spear in the direction of the blonde woman, not an immediately deadly action, but one that held very obvious threat. “You, Rashan, I would fight you first.”

“Truly?” Rashan purred as she motions to the surrounding Amazons, one of them throwing her a spear in response. Twirling the spear between both of her hands with grace and skill, she brings the spear back down just in front of Alicia’s feet before stepping into the centre of the makeshift arena. “No killing blows.” Rashan reminded Alicia as she grasped the spear tightly with both hands. She seemed content to simply wait for Alicia to attack her.

Words seemed ill-suited to the occasion as Alicia matched the display put on by Rashan as she entered a lowered stance, spear-tip pointed towards the floor. She waited a whole second before she moved forward, jabbing the spear low, at the Amazonian’s legs. Unlike her bout with Hanus, Alicia was hardly content to focus on defence here. Intent on pushing her assumed advantage, Alicia didn’t settle for just one jab, but made an effort to make several [b]Rapid Blows[/b] at her opponent’s lower body.

Rashan watches the spear come for her legs and jumps forward, slamming her feet into Alicia’s chest and using her own momentum to then kick herself up and backward from the vampire. Landing a few feet away, she chuckles and shakes her head. “You fight like a cub, so much passion and yet no way of manifesting it properly.” Licking her lips, she then counter charges with her spear, keeping it close to her body rather than lashing out with it constantly. Alicia had time to respond.

Alicia could do little more than grunt as the Amazon used her as some sort of springboard. The jibe from Rashan was enough to cause a pang of annoyance, but she repressed the urge to charge in like an angry child. It was as Hanus had warned her: pride would blind her, and in a situation where a demon might attempt to stab her in the back, that would be lethal...More so than underestimating this foe. “Please, do keep talking. It will make what follows all the more sweet.”

Now that her opponent was on the attack, Alicia felt slightly more comfortable in her plan of action. She was a much stronger fighter when she reacted, it seems. Perhaps a result of her duellist heritage, or perhaps because she normally used a weapon that would be foiled under a smart counter blow. Either way, seeing Rashan charge forward was enough to ease the Vampire as she waited for the amazon’s approach.

When the distance was closed by Rashan, Alicia lashed out at her opponent. She launched a one-handed overhead swing with her spear, a wild and seemingly unruly blow: full of power and speed, but predictable enough.

That was because the overhead blow was only part of the movement. She lashed out with her unarmed hand not half a second later, attempting to grab the Amazonian’s spear as she either blocked or made an attack of her own. Alicia was confident her vampiric heritage would allow her to out pace the Amazon, so this was as good a plan as any.

Rashan reacts predictable to Alicia’s overhead swing by bringing hers up to block it, only to see Alicia grab it. Looking down in surprise she slams her knee into Alicia’s gut, and notices that Alicia doesn’t flinch. “... Undead?” She whispers quietly before kicking outward, pushing Alicia back and snapping both interlocked spears in the process. Looking to her broken spear, she keeps the half with the spear tip and holds it tip down towards the ground, slowly walking around Alicia with a growl. “No wonder the princess likes you.”

“You don’t do listening well, do you?” Unlike Rashan, Alicia did not abandon either part of the spear, holding one half of the spear in each hand, as if they were batons. She mirrored the Amazon’s circling motion, although her opponent’s growl was replaced by a tooth-revealing smirk. She hardly planned to hide what she was, especially when she’d announced it prior.

After a small amount of time circling, Alicia surged forward again, both club-like remains of the spear held menacingly in Rashan’s direction. In theory, Alicia had the advantage by having two weapons; but Rashan had proven to be a good opponent already. So Alicia would be a bit more...clever. She was thinking through her moves this time around, as opposed to the blind instinct that dominated her fight with Hanus. 

No more than a step or two away from Rashan, Alicia struck. She was going to press her two-weapon advantage, so she begun a flurry of Rapid blows, first a left side swing, followed by a right side jab, followed by more and more furious attacks, one after another. Each aiming to overwhelm an Amazon on the defencive.

Rashan seems to welcome the offensive with her own, blocking the blunted weapon with her broken spear and simply blocking with her arm the sharp spear from Alicia, allowing it to dig into her arm and inevitable hook into flesh. Wincing, Rashan then pulls her arms back and lashes out, headbutting Alicia and then viciously kicking out one of her knees. Stepping back a moment she tears Alicia’s spear out of her arm, throwing it to the ground. There was no blood coming out of the wound, yet it quite visible trembled on the surface of her skin. “Not bad.” She looks at her arm and shakes her head. “I concede.” She tosses the remainder of her spear away. “Between the Undead and an Amazon, the fight will only end in death. A pointless death.”

Alicia winced at the feel of her opponent’s physical blows, both the knee and the headbutt causing a degree of pain as she was forced to step back and regain her senses. What hurt more was the way Rashan simply discarded the fight, as if it were meaningless: as if there was no pride to be shown in the battle. Alicia growled as she lobbed the tip-less end of the spear at Rashan’s feet, demanding her attention. “You...fought well: Rashan. I would be honoured to duel you again, should the opportunity present itself.” Slowly, Alicia was calming the torrent of emotions: trying to balance the lessons from Hanus and Ethlinn. Controlling Pride, yet letting passion hold sway: such a strange set of lessons, she had been given.

She walked over to the Amazon, extending a hand to shake. She was unsure if the gesture was known in Amazon culture, but the open palm would surely be indicative of non-threat, right?

The Amazon seemed plainly aware of the tradition of shaking hands, and chose to ignore it, instead focusing her attention on the princess. “Your champions are outsiders who fight your battles for you. You’d make a remarkable leader… For a Free Holder.” Spitting at Alicia’s feet, she steps in line to be investigated by the golemancer. Meanwhile, Ethlinn frowns and looks to Alicia, but nods in appreciation. “You did well.” Her voice seemed somewhat pained, not having the experience to truly hide her emotions yet.

Alicia’s rage nearly bubbled forth as she watched the woman stroll towards Esyltt, having both insulted her gesture of kindness, as well as the Princess. She was ready to lunge at the woman, to strike the insolent bitch and rip out her throat for such an insult, but she resisted...barely. Instead, she strolled over to the spear tip and picked it up, for the first time noticing the lack of blood on it. She paused, a moment of clarity washing over her. “Of course…” She recalled the widespread myth about Amazons, something she had discarded as just that...myth. 

“Princess Ethlinn, may I speak with you in private?”

The princess looks about the small group of Amazons, who seemed more eager to watch the next duel then see how she would respond. Ethlinn nods, then quietly motions her just outside of the circle of Amazons, behind a large tree. Smiling at Alexandria momentarily, she leaves the Queen there to watch the next duel, and interfere if anything would happen to go wrong.