daemonized | RECOLLE IC CONTACT.

Only moderately.

[-he says, though the last part of his word is coupled with a faint grunt as he's taken backwards by Noctis' shoulder check. It isn't enough to toss him off-balance (he's too big, too tall of a man for that), but he still has to step back and re-adjust his footing.]

You're fast learner, if you actually apply yourself, you know.

[HE WOULD KNOW, HE'S YOUR PROFESSOR... Regardless, it's the only reprieve that Noctis gets before he lunges forward again, this time in a feint. If Noctis falls for it, he'll swing upwards in the moment of advantage given to him.]

[ Noctis might have the fundamentals down, but only in his head. In execution, it’s a totally different story. His reflexes fail him, where Noctis falls for the clever disadvantage Ardyn manufactures. The upward swing snaps at his arm, forcing his practice blade from his hand and sending it clattering to the ground.

Noctis grits his teeth, pulling his arm back and turning his head for a moment to see how far its gotten. Not too far. But now he’s forced to find a decent way to run back to it without getting hit.

And wow, that sends his adrenaline into a frenzy. His eyes narrow, looking to Ardyn with a look suggesting that he’s watching and prepared. Even if he isn’t.

Okay, he could... Knock him off his feet? Try to steal his weapon? No, that would be a bad move. Why does he feel so frantic all of the sudden? He tends to take challenges rather seriously, it could be that. But this is a touch different.

For now, Ardyn’s caught Noctis completely open. ]

Tell that to my GPA. I’m doing way more than applying myself.

Well, your GPA won't help you here, Noctis.

[It's said after he returns to stance after his "attack". He feels it, too, that slowly growing competitive edge; though Ardyn is quick to blame it on how enthused Noctis seems to be. The both of them, wound tighter with adrenaline spiking in their veins.

He rushed forward again, but it wasn't a feint this time. It was another swipe of his sword, forceful and horizontal.]

[ Noctis exhales a sharp, frantic sort of sound. The distance he has is inconvenient to grab his practice sword, but he's conveniently fallen within reaching distance of the Engine Blade he'd let lean aside. It's not safe, it's not appropriate in this setting, but that's not exactly on the forefront of his mind for some reason.

Ardyn throws his sword down in a strike, which Noctis reacts to by closing his eyes, willing himself to move. And in a flash of blue light, he shifts away from the attack, leaving a glowing blue hologram of his previous position.

It gives him enough time to stumble and grab the Engine Blade, adrenaline dictating his every move. Noctis feels something in his chest tighten and wind up the second his fingers clench around the handle, and the energy he feels gives him ease of lifting the heavy, metal blade. With a rush forward, Noctis skids his feet along the grass as he slashes diagonally, seeking to knock Ardyn's weapon out of his hand in turn. ]

Try again!

[That flash of blue, that still-image of light left behind in the form of Noctis is all that Ardyn’s practice sword swings acoss. It hits nothing. The buzz of magic in the air, its signature almost identical to his own, is prominent to him. Ardyn frowns, not having expected that — his muscles coil tightly as he steps back when Noctis picks up the Engine Blade, its metal catching the light. He shifts away, just out of range of that blade, and any chance at blocking it with a wooden sword is laughable at best. It’s cleaved in two, and Ardyn just lets it drop to the ground to lie in the grass.

He scoffs, disbelieving, but something in him tells him to continue. That this is clearly fine, this is just how it should go, that practice weapons might never have been enough to begin with. Adrenaline dictates it so, and with a laugh, he just summons his sword in his hand. It flourishes into existence with the usual flair of shattered, red crystal.]

Gladly.

[Ardyn puts his strength into this time, a forceful swing meant to cross against Noctis’ blade, so that he might feel its weight, its pressure.]

[ Something... Shifts. It's not tangible. Not visible. But Noctis feels a strange shift both within and without him, warranting a look of defensiveness. His blood starts to boil and for some reason he's angry, and he's not sure why. Yet all the while, he feels this constant buildup of energy, something that's very quickly boiling over and burning.

And he feels... Good. Angry as he is. Noctis doesn't feel any strain when he moves the blade, and it nearly feels light as a feather. Something akin to certainty and preparedness washes over him the second he sees Ardyn conjure up his own blade from its unseen storage. Noctis has been aware of it for some time, but he hasn't seen it in action since he passed out in front of him.

But now, it's a whole other side. Noctis is forced to work quickly, blades clashing with a loud clang that echoes through their surroundings and he feels his body jolt. Strength he never knew he had kicks in instantaneously, and Noctis is able to shift himself away from the pressure. Another warp, another hologram, he turns on his heel to get out of the line of Ardyn's sword. He tosses the Engine Blade, something he has never been able to do and it flies far, digging itself into the top of a tree where Noctis disappears into thin air and appears dangling from the top.

He's out of breath, amazed at how easily he was able to do it, no illness to follow. And it weirdly increases his energy, kills the lack of ability to catch his breath where he may as well have taken a seat for a few minutes. Before long, he tosses the blade back down, mid-air where he grabs it to throw down into a downward strike.

He has no idea where this prowess came from, but he's too busy to reflect on it right now. ]

RECOLLE IC CONTACT.

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject