Snippet #2172408

Talazar was doing all he could to hold himself back. Constantly his muscles tensed and relaxed, his fingers flexing in turn on both hands as each grasped tightly to either the sword or shaft of his scythe. The man watched patiently as the boy finally freed himself from his bindings and fell to the ground near the girl. Evading her strikes was simple and finally he'd come to a halt approximately ten meters from where they stood. He now waited, observing quietly the exchange between them. The look of shock on the girl's face, the obvious confusion she showed at the boy's words to stay out of her way, Talazar had to smile, the boy she knew was lost to her as of now.

Apparently something he'd said triggered a change, forced away the pitiful excuse for a man he'd seen just moments prior, and now replaced him with a cold hard killer. Or at least someone who had the intent to be such.

"Raiyn," the girl had repeated. Her words were almost like a plea, begging him to return to his normal state, but he more or less completely shrugged her off before turning his attention to Talazar himself. As he spoke, his words were of the same malicious breed as Talazar's, and to this, the man nodded approval.

"Let's see who's more deadly, shall we?"

"Very well!" Talazar responded, chuckling slightly to himself, "Though you're going to regret it."

The man adjusted his stance now, spreading his feet slightly to distribute his weight while moving his left arm forward , bent enough so no impact would shatter his elbow, and holding the scythe at shoulder height, parallel to the ground. His right arm was positioned more acutely, drawn back so that he held the blade angled up with the flat just two inches from his left arm, crossing diagonally in front of his shoulder. The stance was simple, allowed for easy and quick movements, utilizing the scythe's length for more of the combat while keeping the sword ready to take a role as either defensive or supportive. The fighting style past this beginning pose was then left to the combatant's discretion. Personally Talazar knew he could've chosen a better starting position, but he needed to weigh up Raiyn and whatever new strength he may have mustered. For now this sufficed.

Without waiting for Raiyn to move first, Talazar dashed forward, completely dropping the readied stance and closing the distance considerably quickly. The fact that Raiyn was just in front of the Princess helped him in what he would do next as he came up on the two with his scythe and sword trailing behind him, though as usual the blade of the massive farmer's tool was dug into the earth and cutting a clear line that marked each step of the man's progression.

As Talazar crossed the imaginary line that marked one meter, he sudden brought forward the blade of the sword in a simple right-handed uppercut. His right foot had come down in the same instant, and he used it now to pivot himself, his left foot spinning out and tracing the circle as his left arm followed, dragging the scythe forward and across his body as he spun completely 360 degrees. In the final moments of the man's rotation, the scythe swung out, the range supposed to place the blade out far enough to either reach the target who would've normally jumped back in evasion of the first attack, or to extend further than the target. If that were the case, the way Talazar had done the attack required only for him to continue dragging his left arm out to his side, which would bring the weapon and blade forward, back towards him and into the flank or rear of the enemy.

Of course, the fact that the Jewel Princess was behind the boy also meant that even if Raiyn evaded completely, there was the chance he could score a hit on her. No matter the outcome, Talazar was ready to go on the defensive or continue in his assault. The man smiled wickedly, showing his teeth which gleamed with the same evil light as his eyes, and even the blades of his weapons. His right hand by now was recalled to his body, held at what could be a resting position as his right arm was at 90 degrees, crossed over his abdomen with the blade held vertically, just away from his chest. With this ending position, he was ready to slash out if the off chance occurred where the boy evaded both swings and had managed to get in close enough for a counter.

All these thoughts ran through the man's head in the seconds it took for him to execute his movements, his brain never ceasing to think through each and every attack, constantly weighing dangers to outcomes, and then counters or follow-ups.