thecapitol | We are all strangers in a strange land [Open]

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We are all strangers in a strange land [Open]

WHO| Nasir and others
WHAT| Nasir decides the best way to cope with being brought to Panem is to ~~try and hit people a lot~~ spar.
WHEN| The same day as Nasir's arrival, lasting for most of the day.
WHERE| Training Center
WARNINGS| Violence, probably some cursing

Nasir knew he should get his bearings and explore the new city he found himself in but it was overwhelming. There was simply too much to process. Everything was unfamiliar from the clothes to the people to his own room. While it was more comfortable than the tent he’d lived in for months, he missed the tent all the same. As he missed many things, not the least of which his friends and lover. Even if he returned he didn’t know if he would find them: if Laeta and Sibyl had convinced Agron to move on beyond the grasp of Rome without Nasir or if he stubbornly remained waiting for him, at risk of his life.

Nasir's anger at being torn away-- enslaved again-- brought him to the training center. The journey there had been interesting to say the least and he did not care for that elevator room. But as soon as his hand grasped a spear he felt more at ease. Now if only he had something other than a target, someone who could give him a proper challenge.

Looking around, he spotted a figure and quickly approached them.

“I would spar with you, if you are of desire.” Nasir himself did not appear to be impressive. Short and lithe, he went shirtless and wore a necklace of what, on closer inspection, were three phalluses. But he had a determination in his eyes and he handled his spear with surety.

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"Venus." She approaches with leisurely swagger, the bo slung over her shoulders, head canted to the side, before she too takes a battle stance. "Do you have any rituals before we beat each other up? Bowing or anything?"

"No, someone says 'attack' and then we attempt to, in your words, 'beat each other up.'" Emphasis on attempt. "Since there are no spectators I will give you the opportunity to choose when to begin."

But before they began there was one thing he had to comment on. "Your parents named you after the goddess? Did they seek to risk her wrath?" No wonder she'd been sent here.

Nasir was still ready for Venus, whenever she chose to attack.

"My agent might have. My parents named me something else." But she doesn't elaborate. It's not his business.

"Attack!" she yells, immediately dropping low and bringing the bo down in a sweep, protecting her head with her forearm. Her style of fighting uses the ground more than the air, using speed and flexibility to hit unexpectedly.

Nasir saw the way she moved and reacted on instinct. He pushed off the ground and up over the staff. He immediately took advantage of how she was crouched. Without even waiting until he had landed, he swung the spear down, but not as hard as he would normally, giving him the chance to halt at the last minute should she be unable to block.

"Whoa!" The sound rips out of her just as she twists to avoid the strike, to bring her staff up to block his. The clack of wood sends vibrations all the way down her wrist.

She swings her foot out to hit his ankle.

Still light on his feet, Nasir jumped back. This was not a combat style he was used to. Roman soldiers were weighed down by the bulk of their armor and used their upper body strength. Venus took advantage of the power of her legs.

Nasir hissed and had to take a step back to regain his balance. It lost him the opportunity to strike back.

She uses the distance as a chance to measure him up. So, he's used to strength instead of speed. She can use that to her advantage - but he also has pretty firm balance, and that means she can't reverse his momentum as easily as she can some other foes.

She starts to circle around him, looking for a weak spot.

Nasir turned as Venus moved, never allowing her to see his back. Given that she'd tried to do it on him, attempting to trip her likely wouldn't work.

He didn't want to give her too much time to assess him. He took a step closer and made a swiping motion, level with Venus's chest. He didn't hold back, trusting that she was skilled enough to block before he sliced her open.

At first he'd gone with caution, not wanting to injure her, but the gloves were coming off. For the most part. After all, he didn't want to accidentally kill her. She'd live with some injuries though, if it came to that.

She's skilled enough to block, but not fast enough to brace to keep the blow from knocking her off balance. Her foot shoots out, her ankle twisting painfully to catch herself from falling. She doesn't allow for much time for her own recovery, though, as she looses one hand from the staff and throws a punch, lunging in close.

Nasir jumped back but he was too late by a fraction of a second. Venus's fist hit his jaw and he reeled back, taking step after step to put more distance between them until he can recover.

To distract her, he swept his spear again, weaker this time, to strike Venus's staff and keep it away.

She lets him sweep the staff away, and actually lets the weapon be ripped from her hands. By now she's trying to close the gap between them, the fact that they were fighting with spears giving way to her comfort with hand-to-hand. They never made it a rule, after all.

She throws a kick at his stomach.

The kick knocked Nasir off his feet but he kept a grip on his spear. As soon as he was able, he raised it in front of him, ready to stab (or at least make a motion to) as soon as she attempted to get in range. He began to push himself up.

Venus fought well but it would take more than that if she wanted to beat him.

It keeps her away from him, and she realizes now that losing her own weapon might be a fatal mistake were this an Arena. The spear puts too much distance between them for her hand to hand to be much use.

She takes a risk and throws herself to the side and forward, moving to get in closer than the spear and take it away from him, to force him into hand to hand.

Nasir was on his feet now and he was so fast on them that it seemed like he danced back. Now that his blood was rushing in his veins and his adrenaline had set in, he was treating this more like a real battle. This was the challenge he'd wanted.

In a flurry of movement, he pushed forward, spinning his spear to distract before sweeping it straight at her legs, just as Venus had attempted to sweep him off his feet.

Venus avoids the hit, but at the cost of the close proximity she was fighting to gain. She steps back, rounding the edge of the mat, tongue in her cheek.

"Want to even things out and throw the spear down?"

"Only if you concede." Nasir moved back within range. His attacks weren't thrusts now that she had no weapon with which to block but sideswipes. He made to strike her side hard.

She'd survive a bruise.

Her only option is to keep backing up or to go back in for the kill. She takes the smack to her hip, moving with it to take the worst of the force out of the blow.

She raises her hands. "I concede."

She has no bet on her own pride.

Despite what he said, Nasir thrust his spear directly beneath Venus's chin though it would stop before piercing skin.

"Then you are both fool and corpse." Nasir's voice was harsh.

He did not think the woman needed the lesson but Nasir's nerves were on edge and if a recruit had stood before him in Venus's place, he would have done the same. Sparring matches should not be life and death, but they should be taken seriously. They were practice for a real fight, after all.

"Chill." Venus' voice gets deep and cold, her face firm as that of a statue despite the blade barely an inch from her jugular. Her upper lip curls slightly, and she folds her arms.

"I'm here to evaluate my competition and practice, not get pushed around. Now unless you're going to follow through on that threat, put the spear down, Sparky." She lifts her chin, exposing her neck more.

Sparky?

Something that must not translate, perhaps an insult and if so Nasir was glad he did not know it. More anger was not what was needed.

"I would not kill you." Nasir quickly removed the spear from her throat. He held it at his side. "Apologies if I caused offense." He had the decency of sounding apologetic.

"You did." Venus takes a step back, moving to leave the gym. "I come here as an equal, not as a student."

Nasir was not that apologetic. If Venus wanted to take offense to imagined slight that was her concern. At the moment, Nasir did not care for making friends if they could not handle such corrections.

"We all can learn, even from equals." Nasir picked up her discarded staff and moved to put it away. "Gratitude for the match."

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We are all strangers in a strange land [Open]

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