Show me yours, I show you mine.

[Kokyou]

Kokyou waited outside. Drenched wet from the rain and with a bokken tucked within his obi. The hour of the serpent was indeed very ominous, as the forms above his head crackled their light and roars every so often.

[Kuni Yotsuo]

Taking some time after the jiujutsu lesson to meditate on what he had learned and try to incorporate the experience fully into his understanding, he found that his mind was eased by the strengthened understanding that he was now far more capable of defending himself and others in any situation that called for a fight. With confidence he rose from seiza and grabbed a bokken. He had done what he can to improve his skill with his fists. Now it was time to double down on his skill with the blade.

Seeing one of the mantis students, he bowed to the boy and greeted him. "Nice to see you again Kokyou-san."

D3 Serpent, Meditation / Void, TN 20: 5d10o10k2 29 +2 Void Points

[Utaku Nesrin]

Nesrin ran inside long enough to pick out a bokken for the task. Her stick was sturdy, but it was honestly not weighted right for this. Coming out of the building, she searched the practice yard through the rain; everyone looked like a soaking wet blob in the dim light and downpour. Thank goodness for lightning. She spotted Kokyou with someone else in the sharp flash as lightening arced through the clouds and trotted over. At least the rain had already taken most of the mud off.

She bowed to them both, then wiped dripping hair out of her eyes. "Ho there, Mantis-san. Hope the setting elevates our skill to match it. Afternoon, ah...student-san. Sorry, I'm not even getting a good look at mons in this."

[Kuni Yotsuo]

"I am Kuni Yotsuo," he says in introduction to the Unicorn, bowing politely. "A pleasure to meet you."

[Utaku Nesrin]

"Utaku Nesrin, daughter of Utaku Kyo. The honor is mine Kuni-san." She continues talking while checking that her bokken is tucked securely in the thin obi tied over her practice clothes. "We were going to practice some iaijutsu today. Osano-wo decided to make it extra exciting, neh?"

[Kokyou]

Seeing one of the mantis students, he bowed to the boy and greeted him. "Nice to see you again Kokyou-san."

”Crab-san! A pleasure seein’ ye around. Aye! How ye be farin’?”

"We were going to practice some iaijutsu today. Osano-wo decided to make it extra exciting, neh?"

” An ominous coincidence, perhaps? I would say no. Mighty Osano-wo heard o' our trainin' march 'n made sure this spectacle would be remembered forever. Me ancestor surely approves o' this!” Kokyou grins while lightning cracks over their heads. His eyes focused on Nesrin’s form. Wet form.

His grin widens.

[Utaku Nesrin]

For her part, Nesrin looks back up at the dark sky. "Seems like the kind of thing he'd approve of, yeah."

There's no way they'll see any of the sparring circles in the mud at this point, so it's really just a matter of guesswork. "hmm...would you say the circles are about 10 paces wide usually?"

[Kokyou]

"Circles? Paces. I guess so. So we count ten paces, turn, 'n hurl daggers? I thought we would train iaijutsu. Anyhow, I'll do as ye please, lovely." Kokyou starts to get closer to Nesrin so they could count backwards. Maybe too close.

[Utaku Nesrin]

The not-quite Battle Maiden pushes him back with a no-nonsense palm to his chest. "Daggers? No, it's Iai and that's swords... do the Mantis duel with daggers? We usually have a space purified for a real duel, and a circle's easy to mark out. Doesn't matter so much for practice, usually the dojo's pure enough, and here?" She raises both hands up into the rain, "the storm itself will do the job. Few things more pure than rain."

[Kokyou]

"We duel t' anythin' we fancy duelin' wit'. Ye jus' can nah turn down a wager." He smiles, looking at her hand at his chest. He provides an apologetic nod, and starts counting the steps back. Once in position, he bows, ready to assume a stance.

[Utaku Nesrin]

"We duel t' anythin' we fancy duelin' wit'. Ye jus' can nah turn down a wager." He smiles, looking at her hand at his chest. He provides an apologetic nod, and starts counting the steps back. Once in position, he bows, ready to assume a stance.

"Wager aren't the same as duels." At least she's pretty sure they aren't. She's seen some of both and...nah...

Bare feet pace through the mud, and she turns, shakes her wet hair from her face again, and settles into the stance she'd begun to learn. She tries to find her center and feel exactly how she's connected to the ground her strike will come from.

*****************
Initiative: 30 because my dice only double explode when you're in the picture. :p

(stealing from duel flowchart)
All duels take place over 3 rounds of combat regardless of whether you are in a skirmish or not.
Both participants roll initiative at the beginning of a duel, at which point they enter the Center stance.

[Kokyou]

Kokyou was still retuning form when lightning struck again. It wasn't in the sky, though. He looks forward and notices the girl on her stance already. The Mantis boy enters his own, widening his eyes and opening a smirk to read her, real deep.

--
D3, Serpent, Initiative Vs. Nesrin: 3d10o10k2 17
D3, Serpent, Iaijutsu (Assessment)/Awareness TN 15 (Asking Void Ring): 3d10o10k2 17

[Utaku Nesrin]

Normally, she'd be studying her opponent now, the little shifts they made with their feet and hands and eyes. But much of that was obliterated by the rain and she had to let her instincts see what her eyes could not. Her hand hovered over the grip of her bokken.


------
Assesment (TN 15 against Nesrin. passed. Void 1)

Nesrin's Assessment: 18 Asking Void as well

And focus since nobody got amazing enough assessment for a benefit. 17

edit: right ATN 15. Will put it below as well.

[Kokyou]

Osano-wo heartfelt laughter. A thunderous boom in the sky awakens even more lightning as their practice blades fly off their obi at, virtually, the same time.

--
(Void 1)
D3, Serpent, Iaijutsu (Focus)/Void +1k1+1 (Center): 3d10o10k2+1 19
ATN: 15

[Utaku Nesrin]

'Blade' leaping forward with the lightening strike, Nesrin just manages to hit, wooden blade flicking against the wrist of his off hand with hardly a sting. Her shout is completely inaudible in the thunder.

_____
ATN: 15
Strike: 15 XD
Damage: 4

[Kokyou]

Kokyou copies the exact same strike. He does, though, shout a longer ".....aaaaaaaar!" that he maintains as the thunder blast wears off.

--
D3, Serpent, Iaijutsu (Strike)/Reflex +1k1+1 (Center) TN 15: 4d10o10k3+1 20
D3, Serpent, Bokken damage to Nesrin: 3d10o10l1 4
Initiative: 19 (Quick)

[Utaku Nesrin]

Nesrin tucks the bokken back into its place, grinning. "Well, I'm glad the thunder added some drama at least, if none of us can win."

[Kokyou]

Kokyou flicks the blade as if cleaning blood, then puts it back into his obi, without taking his eyes off Nesrin. He bows, and says, "I won, in fact. A heartie, I believe."

[Kuni Yotsuo]

Yotsuo had stood watching the match, curious about it. When it was done, he nodded to his fellow students. He was no judge of these things though, so he didn't offer any words. He didn't know if they had done well, poorly or if one of them had even won.

Instead, he just brought up his blade and began practicing defensive forms and kata.

[Utaku Nesrin]

"That's not how it works...well it's not how my sensei taught me. When you hit each other at the same time nobody was fast enough to make a decision ," she says...polite, but just a bit outraged that someone might change the rules in the middle of things. "Or is that something like your 'lootin the tar'? A hearty what? lesson?"