BranchWood Academy - Canceled

Gilfer walked into the arena and saw Blake shadow-fighting across the arena. The sunlight was being reflected off of the sigils on his bare right arm, and there was a glare coming off of the armor on Gilfer's left arm. His blue skin stood out among his peers, most of them being human. Gilfer carried a large black case on his back, and he ran over to Blake. He stood by him and said. "So I know that you were disheartened by the fact that I use magic, but how about this? Me and you spar, I use no magic, just this blade." Gilfer put the case on the ground and snapped off the restraints, opening it. He lifted his sword, a massive two handed black blade with a golden trim. Gilfer rested it on his right shoulder as he continued to speak. "It's recently been brought to my attention that my swordplay is ... less than satisfactory, And you're the best swordsman i know, will you help out an aspiring Weapon-Master?"

Blake stopped his sparing for a moment and put his blade back in its sheath. "Hmm, So your looking to get help from me? I'm surprised to see someone like you ask me for help." It seemed kind of odd that Blake was only wielding one weapon at the time being. Normally he was seen carrying about both his weapons but It seemed only one was with him at this moment. "So, less than satisfactory? Who told you something like that O'Magician?" He let out a slight laugh and turned to him once more.

"Very well, I'll be willing to take you up in a duel. Although, I'm not going to hold back when it comes to swords play. So, I suggest if you are smart you won't hold back your magic. I don't mean using offensive magic though... I think using magic to augment yourself will be fair in this match up." he placed his hand down on his weapon and looked at Gilfer.

Gilfer started to walk away from Blake until he was about fifteen feet back "The man who graced me with this compliment on my swordplay was our beloved headmaster." He then planted his feet into the ground and raised his sword to the sky."I guess a little magic cant hurt." As Gilfer uttered these words thunder boomed and lightning struck his blade blasting through the blade and charging his body with electricity, all the hair on Gilfer's body stood up straight, and his sigils and eyes were glowing a bright burning white and electricity was jumping off of them. None of the storm was in his blade however, Gilfer planted the tip of his sword into the ground, looked at Blake, and said "Ready when you are."

Blake let out a laugh at Gilfer and it looked like he was wiping a tear from his eye. "Ha, Now you've got my attention! The Head Master called you out on being a bad swordsman? Oh, Oh then surely this will be a fun duel." Blake raised his blade in front of himself in a defensive stance. "I see you took my suggestion and went with a bit of magic huh? Well looks like I'll be allowed to use a few tricks of my own then." Blake began to make a subtle approach at Gilfer with his sword still in a defensive position.

Gilfer saw the swordsman start to approach and he did the same. His hands were at his hips and the blade was infront of Gilfer's chest. He studied every one of Blake's movements adjusting his own to match. Gilfer cautiously approached until he was in range to attack Blake. He swung his sword down as fast as he could from his stance intending to impact Blake's blade in an attempt to gauge the power difference.

Blake noticed the slightest movement from Gilfer and noted that it was an offensive movement. Blake sidestepped out of the way of Gilfer's attack as his form of defense. Blake was well aware of the limited capabilities of the blade Gilfer wielded and he knew that an attack from the side would prove difficult.

After side stepping Blake positioned his hands on his blade at the same time. He changed his defensive stance into one of pure offense as he stepped towards Gilfer. Blake had begun a relentless assault with power and speed behind his strikes. The first strike came from an awkward position for Gilfer. Since Blake had gotten on the side of Gilfer by sidestepping he sung the sword towards his back. The second strike would involve Blake repositioning his hands and turning the blade mid swing.

After the blade was turned Blake swung the sword upward at a fierce speed. The final strike would involve a switching of position entirely. Blake would rotate his feet and switch his hands once more. Afterwards Blake brought the blade downward in a slashing motion that would aim for the collarbone. This final position would leave Blake's sword to low to defend from an attack.

Gilfer was unprepared for a dodge, expecting a parry, he braced himself only to be struck down the back by the blade. There was a long thin gash going down Gilfer's back, After the initial blow Gilfer spun around and leaned backwards throwing his arm over his chest and his sword at his side. Gilfer nearly avoided the second attack. The blade scraped Gilfer's arm leaving a small cut up the side Gilfer's right arm.

Sparks flew from Gilfer's body and thunder boomed as a surge of energy was sent into Gilfer's muscles allowing him to springboard back towards Blake. Gilfer coated his armored left forearm in a dense light and threw it infront the blade. Blake's katana cut through the light but it slowed enough momentum for the armor to stop the blade entirely. Gilfer thrusted his arm forward in an attempt to send Blake back.

Gilfer with one hand and a lot of energy surging to his arm swung his sword horizontally aimed at Blake's gut. Sparks were flying from his blade as it flew through the air, afterwards Gilfer caught the hilt of his blade with his other hand, planted his feet, tightened his grip, and sent his blade upwards diagonally towards Blake trying to slash through his chest. Gilfer would finally hold his blade infront of him awaiting Blake's next move as some orange blood dripped down his back.

The initial strike had knocked Blake's footing out of whack. Blake stumbled back keeping a generalized position ready for Gilfer to strike. Although, a frontal assault while on uneven footing wasn't something Blake wanted anything to do with. He quickly jolted his arm forward and brought the sword with it. Blake readjusted his position and brought the sword into contact with Gilfers initiating a parry. Though on Blake's terrible positioning the sword was launched out of his hand and sent into the distance. The second strike Blake jumped back away from in order to avoid it. The fact that the strike was quick after a parry said Gilfer had some skill with swords.

This would mean Blake was unarmed but the battle wasn't over just yet. Blake rose his arms into a defensive position and readied himself for another attack. Blake had got away from the scenario without the blade touching him at all. But, it came at a cost and left him with no weapon for the time being. "That wasn't a bad move on your part. Although, this isn't the first time I've been in a position like this. What is that blade made out of anyway?"

Gilfer released a blast of lightning to the sky as he ignited his black in blue flame, burning off his shirt revealing his bare chest and the sigils that connect over his pectoral muscles. The flame healed his back, though he had reduced speed now that the charge was gone. The only clothing on Gilfer's upper body was His left shoulder plate, his gauntlet that covered his forearm, the chain-mail in between them, and the Y-shaped leather strap wraps around his back and holds the armor to his body.

"From a weapon master as strong as you that compliment means a lot, so thanks. My blade, Its mostly made of Mithril, The black elven metal that reflects moonlight and conducts magic well, but its edge and hilt are made of Orichalcum, The pink-gold Orcish metal that doesn't dent or dull. It has a swap crystal at its core and a rune inscribed on it. The enchantment makes the blade lighter for the wielder. The blade has weight behind it, it just doesn't feel like it for me."

While Gilfer was talking he coated his left arm in light, and swung his sword with his right at Blake's legs. The swing caused him to twist his torso pushing back his left side. Gilfer, expecting Blake to jump up to dodge his sword, burst his left arm forward throwing a light covered metal punch at Blake's chest. "Just what is your katana made of?" He asked after striking at the swordless swordsman.

Blake watched as Gilfer was able to heal with no trouble at all. "I see, mithril huh? That's a rare metal to see now... Often times it comes in smaller doses and isn't used for weaponry anymore. Perhaps the reason they stopped using mithril for weapons was due to the fact that it was weaker against heavier elemental attacks. Although, I'm not caught up on the recent trends."

Blake noticed that Gilfer had went to attack him when he was talking. Blake decided to use a very rare type of stance as Gilfer approached. "You know, I may not look it but I'm decent at close quarters without a sword." As Gilfer began to swing at Blake he had no choice but to take the opportunity to jump. This ended up bringing him in the way of Gilfer's next attack. Blake rose his arms to defend as he took the strike head on launching him back.

"The type of metal my sword is made of?" Blake used his knee to stand back up after taking the blow to the upper body. Meanwhile Blake's sword was still to far for him to go and get. "Normally, the type of material depends on the element the weapon master uses. But, for an all purpose sword normally Adamantium is the go to material. The durability of the metal makes it a very reliable source." Blake looked around trying to figure out an offensive movement he could take..

An idea sparked in Blake's head and he decided to run at Gilfer head on. It would seem at this moment that Blake's intention was to charge at Gilfer and get by to obtain his sword. Perhaps that just might not be the case though.

Gilfer shook his hand after delivering the blow in an attempt to lessen the pain of his knuckles against the steel of his gauntlet and laughed a bit."My sword has on my mom's side of the family for generations, before my dad added the Orchalcum, so it is pretty old. I guess that would explain the excess Mithril." Gilfer saw Blake run at him and had no clue of his intentions. Running at me head on with no weapon is he mad? Gilfer thought to himself as he raised his hands above his head preparing an overhanded strike. Just as Blake was in striking distance Gilfer unleashed a two-handed downward swing aiming for Blake's shoulder, But the Weapon-Master rolled at the last possible second and grabbed hold of Gilfer's wrist forcing him to release the blade.

Gilfer rolled forward after dropping his weapon "Damn, I underestimated you. I Thought you a fool." As Gilfer spoke he threw his hands infront of his eyes and shouted "SOLAR FLARE" Creating a blinding flash in the surrounding area. After hopefully temporarily blinding Blake he made a mad dash for Blake's Katana. Upon lifting the weapon Gilfer remarked "Adamantium huh? that means its pretty much unbreakable right?." He held Blake's blade to the sky Exhausted his flames and shouted "Conduction!" Lightning cracked striking the sword and charging them both with electricity. Gilfer mirrored Blake's defensive stance from earlier and approached Blake.

Blake dusted himself off after disarming Gilfer in close quarters. Blake realized what had happened just a moment to late and was entirely blinded by the solar flare. Blake stumbled backward and attempted to regain his posture. "God Damn!" Blake was noticeably disoriented and had very sporadic movements at the moment. Blake's vision was entirely blurry and unreliable for the time being.

It was at that moment the sound of cracking thunder had come forth. Blake realized that something had occurred and he took a defensive position trying to hear the footsteps of Gilfer. Blake was on an all our defense until he could regain the majority of his sight. Luckily the move Gilfer had used on Blake's sword wouldn't last for more than a few minutes. Magic being mixed with the core of Weapon Mastery is unheard of and almost ninety five percent of the time fails instantly. Some rare cases it can last up to minutes before the magic in the weapon's core shuts down.

Gilfer adjusted himself as he once again got used to the power surging through him. he then pointed the katana towards Blake and let out all of the lightning in the blade in a bolt headed for Blake's hands. Gilfer hoped to have the current travel through Blake, stunning him without killing his friend, but was unaware of what weapon master gloves do. "Meet the power of an Odinson" Gilfer shouted as he unleashed the blast.

As soon as the blade's lightning shot out Gilfer started to dash towards Blake and when he was in strike distance spin 360 degrees to add momentum to his swing. Gilfer swung the blunt end of Blake's katana at its master in an attempt to hit his opponent his opponent with just brute strength. Gilfer ended up at Blake's side after the strike, and using his increased speed unleashed an electric knee towards the Blake's side.

Due to Blake's current situation he wasn't able to dodge the lightning. Luckily it hit off his gloves and completely discharged into the air. Thanks to the fact that it came from his weapon's core it was almost useless.

As Gilfer came in quickly Blake was able to jump back from the swing. The cut managed to go across Blake's stomach and tear open his clothing. The blood trickled down from his stomach and began to drip onto the shirt. "Oh man that was a close blow." Blake ran his hand across his stomach and felt the blood. He noticed that the cut wasn't to deep and it wasn't something that would Hinder him from fighting.

Blake's vision at this point was returning naturally allowing him to move freely again. Blake looked down to his gloves particularly eyeballing the dark crystal. I wonder if it's time to use this yet or whether I should wait a little longer...

Gilfer felt like something was wrong, he then looked at the katana and remarked "Guess its not my style." He drove the blade into the ground a few inches and left it standing upright. Gilfer then focused the control of his magic into the charge of electricity running through his body. He focused the charge into the muscles in his legs as he moved looking almost like a blur as he closed the gap between the two of them.

As he got close he threw his hands infront of his eyes and shouted "SOLAR FLARE" ,in an attempt to get the Swordsman to close his eyes, but instead of causing the burst of light this time he released most the electricity in him through his feet propelling him upwards. As was propelled he lifted his knee infront him and coated it in light aiming it for the cut on Blake's stomach. If he hit the light would seal the cut but inflict blunt trauma to Blake's stomach that would propel them both a few feet in the air. After the knee while Gilfer starts to descend he releases what electricity was left to cause him to spin to his right. He attempts to land a roundhouse kick to Blake's ribs in the descent.

As Gilfer drove Blake's blade into the ground, he began to prepare himself for what was next. Blake was well aware that Gilfer was prepared to attack Blake with his speed. Though, that was the only thing Blake knew for the time being. Blake took up a very defensive stance with his one hand outstretched before Gilfer bolted using his ability.

Blake was unable to keep a keen eye on his movements and as the gap was finally closed Blake managed to shield his eyes for a moment. Blake was soon met by a knee to his stomach directly on his injury. The power of the knee thrust lifted Blake up immediately off the ground launching him in an upward fashion.

Although Blake was in a crippled state of pain he noticed that Gilfer set his leg in the position for a kick. Blake extended his hand quickly and a black glint appeared from Blake's hand. Quickly as if in the blink of an eye a large shield manifested to block the full assault of the kick.

The thrust launched Blake backwards as he slammed the large shield into the ground to slow his momentum. The shield quickly disappeared again and instead this time in its place was Blake's other blade. The fire Katana had finally appeared and Blake pointed this blade forward. "Well, now Gilfer that was quite a good hit you had there. Unfortunately, you aren't quite through this fight just yet."

Blake dug his foot into the ground before sprinting towards Gilfer at a fast speed.

As Gilfer followed through with the kick, he was not prepared the sudden appearance of the shield. The force of his kick tremored through Gilfer's shin sending him back, crashing to the ground and rolling away. As Gilfer managed to get back to his feet he noticed the katana in Blake's hand and more importantly that he could barely stand on his leg.

Gilfer stood there half limping he expelled the Electricity from his body in a shock nova around him sending bolts in all directions lighting up the sky. Inside the ball of electricity beams of lights pierced the shell of electricity and burst free making a small flash that revealed two large wings of blue and yellow flame wrapped around Gilfer. The wings spread to out and then creeped down his body to his leg, coating it in a rejuvenating flame that allowed him to walk. In his hands was the source of the bright beams, two curved great swords made of light with rounded off tips.

Gilfer was slower now without his charge and he couldn't keep up with Blake anymore, though he wouldn't let it show. He held one blade up and one down as he rushed over to meet Blake halfway with a spinning slash aimed at Blake's katana. After his first attack Gilfer joined the two swords into one massive bastard sword and held it infront of him in a defensive stance.

As the two of them collided in the center Blake used his katana to defend against the spinning strike. The blow was immense and Required Blake to place his one hand on the opposite side of the strike on his katana. This allowed Blake to sturdy his weapon and reduce the chance for it shattering against such a large weapon. The impact managed to dig the sharp edge of the blade into Blake's hand just slightly. After the blow was delivered Blake swung his blade sliding along Gilfer's parrying his blades back.

Blake jumped back after the immediate attack and realized he had formed them into a large bastard sword. "Well, seems you have more than some petty tricks at your disposal." Blake looked to his left than his right looking for his other Blade and where it was currently at. He manged to pinpoint the exact position of his second katana and began to side step facing Gilfer towards it's location.

Gilfer was oblivious to where Blake was headed all of his attention was focused on the weapon master himself. Expecting an attack Gilfer slowly inched forward towards Blake at about the same speed Blake was moving towards the katana. Gilfer held this massive eight foot blade above him and smashed it on the ground, creating a flash and sending shards of light flying in Blake's direction.

Gilfer then ran at Blake with his leg still aflame. Gilfer shouted "The Element Of Surprise!" at the top of his lungs as he coated his legs in armor made of light and dive kicked towards the swordsman aiming at his face. In both of Gilfer's hands were nine inch dirks after the attempted strike he would attempt to parry whatever followed with these.

Blake had dove for his Katana when Gilfer had went onto the offensive. In an admirable speed Blake finally wielding both his blades began to parry the shards of light. Every so often from this low lying position a shard would managed to make some sort of contact, Whether it was a graze or a direct hit. Although, one thing was for sure Blake's parries were extremely ineffective from this sitting position and all the shards he parried also grazed him. So it made this effort almost useless when it finally stopped, He had still collected an immense amount of damage.

Blake stood up and seemed to be dripping blood from a lot of places. Blake realized that Gilfer was much closer than he had thought when he heard him shout. Blake gripped both his Katanas tightly and tossed them at Gilfer before he was able to land the kick. The attack directly landed on Blake's face and sent him back at a dangerous pace. Blake smashed into the ground and rolled back. He was rolling at an uncontrollable pace until he finally used his feet to slow the roll. Blake managed to stop himself in a crouching position and was letting out heavy breaths.

"Damn, that was a tough hit!" He coughed quite a bit and stood once again. "Seems you're adapting the longer this match goes Gilfer... I suppose that means I should end this soon."