The Face Off

A battle between two fighters from two warrior clans. A battle of might and mind.

## The Face Off

The sun is shining over the forest as a gentle breeze flows through the trees. A rather peaceful setting for what will soon most certainly not be a peaceful moment. Sitting on a rock, impatiently tapping her finger on her crossed arm, is a young woman with striking red hair that would help those in the know to recognize her as the newest heir to the Magnüs family.

“Come on, let's just call this off while we still can." That would be Leon, one of the friends she had made outside of the tribe. He's brave enough when need be but that difference in origin led to somewhat of a fundamental difference between them when it comes to conflict. Namely that he generally prefers to avoid conflict when possible while Tornbjorg is always ready and eager to rise to a challenge. On top of that, he just wasn’t raised with the same values as her. He can't understand the pride of a Magnüs warrior slighted.

This had all begun two nights ago. Tornbjorg and a few of her friends had gone out together for drinks, finding the nearest bar where they could openly talk about their magical exploits and plans.

"- not my best idea but nothing too permanent" Cassidy was excitedly talking about her most recent experiments in using magic to enchant, enhance, and alter when another group came in, five Faceless warriors from a local clan.

The two groups ended up mingling at one point and got along well enough. While only about half of Tornbjorg’s group understood the whole helmet situation that gives the Faceless their common name, they could still respect the skill and often a sort of honor held by the Faceless. So they drank together, boasted about past glories, and had a good time.

As the night went on though it became clear the liquor was not the best idea. His inhibitions lowered, one of the Faceless named Erik revealed some disdain he held for Nýr Aldur. Accidentally at first but he didn't hesitate to hold his ground when called out on it by the suddenly much less friendly Tornbjorg. He derided them as backward and not equal to an Aprósopi.

Things got heated and both groups were told to vacate the premises but before they did, Tornbjorg challenged Erik to a Duel. At first Erik just laughed it off, not caring to respond to a challenge from some barbarian whelp. To this Tornbjorg retorted "Perhaps you're just afraid that this whelp will show you up in front of your clan." Erik could ignore a challenge from some outsider he saw as beneath him but no Aprósopi likes his skills and courage being questioned. He warned that he had more experience and skill than her in his finger alone but now it was her turn to stand her ground and he finally accepted, stating he would meet her in two days at a nearby location.

And that is how Tornbjorg and her friends ended up here, waiting on this duel. She is about to respond to Leon when a certain voice announces itself "Hmph, so you actually showed up. I half thought you would have fled by now."

Erik had arrived along with multiple other Faceless from clan Quinn.

"And I was starting to think I'd have to drag you from your home. Trying to delay the inevitable? You're late."

Erik just lets out an amused scoff in response. One of the other Faceless steps forward. "As Erik is the challenged party he has been given the right to choose the terms of the duel."

"Fair enough, and what are these terms?"

A weapon is tossed toward Tornbjorg which she catches, a spear. Erik speaks up to explain his own terms now "Combat will choose who is right and the loser will admit their mistake for all to hear. No spell casting and no weapons outside of these spears. Our arena is everything around us and the battle will continue until the winner is clear."

"Fine by me." Tornbjorg answers, taking on a ready stance. It isn’t her first choice as she generally prefers to fight with fists and flames but certainly isn't averse to using a spear either. Regardless of her feelings on the matter though they had both said what they needed to and the warriors take up their positions.

An overseer from each party is chosen for the duel, mostly for show as the rules of this engagement would be obvious if broken. They take a position halfway between Erik and Tornbjorg but out of the way and ensure once again that they understand the terms before speaking in unison.

"Ready."

Both fighters release any lingering thoughts on anything but this duel. Giving their opponent their full attention.

"And-"

Hands tighten around their weapons

"Fight!"

Immediately Tornbjorg charges the Faceless, aggressive as ever. She swings her spear at him which he manages to block but the sheer power of the attack does make him take a step back. It seems that the challenger has an advantage in speed and especially strength, noticeable to the bystanders. Erik doesn't falter for long though, pushing her spear safely away from his body while simultaneously bringing the butt of the spear around in a counterattack that Tornbjorg quickly backs out of range from.

Not letting up any longer than needed, she follows up with a series of thrusts that he either avoids or catches on his armor. Although one could argue the armor to be an unfair advantage against this unarmored foe he's still allowed to wear it since it's practically a second skin for many Aprosopi and as far as Tornbjorg is concerned it’s a further opportunity to show she truly bested him. Unfortunately, that isn’t exactly how it’s going as he continues to meet every attack and often throws back a counter. While Tornbjorg had immediately shown herself to have an advantage in terms of sheer physical power, she is using a method of fighting that she does not have much experience with and going up against an individual who almost worships weapons. It's clear that he has the skill advantage as he predicts her offensives with ease and she can't get through. She feels some frustration at this but is admittedly also impressed to have finally met someone who can actually take a hit from her.

“Come on is that all you’ve got? I don’t know how but you’re managing to disappoint me.” Erik taunts after once again blocking an attack. Tornbjorg practically growls in response and redoubles her efforts to break through his defenses. While she had earlier poked at his pride, that same soft spot also existed for her after all. Perhaps it was not a good idea to press that weakness however as suddenly Erik seems to be increasingly overwhelmed by the rise in intensity, every attack coming stronger and faster than before. His guard becomes less certain, shaken by this new assault, it deteriorates little by little until she sees it. An opening in his stance, forced open by the continuous hammering at his defense.

Immediately Tornbjorg takes the opening, thrusting her spear at an opening of his armor with the intent of skewering his arm. The spearhead strikes true but… “What?!” Tornbjorg can’t help but let out a small exclamation of surprise as the spearhead simply stops at making a small scratch on the exposed flesh, barely enough to bleed at all. She can practically feel the smirk behind his helmet as he had begun his own attack just before hers concluded, aiming to pierce her lower torso which she only just manages to avoid, only taking a shallow cut along her side but still deeper than the one she had inflicted on her opponent. With both of them past the effective range of their weapons, she immediately releases her left hand’s grip on her spear and punches him. The blow sends him backward but he’s once again unharmed, partly because in her surprise and confusion Tornbjorg had not properly aimed the punch like she did with her thrust and had hit him square on the breastplate. ‘Damn, the rumors of that armor don’t do it justice’ That was the first time in a long time that her hand had hurt after hitting something.

“Hey what was that!?” an angry exclamation came from Tornbjorg’s group, all had noticed that the spear did far less than it should have. “A shielding spell which should invalid-”

Before they can finish their protest the Faceless overseer interjects “Clan Quinn caries the mementos of great battles on us, it is as much a part of our person as our helm. Erik did not cast any shield spell but carries an artifact that lessens physical damage from a battle with a powerful mage.”

Looking closely now Tornbjorg can see it, something she had taken for a trinket on his pauldron when they first started fighting but it is indeed giving off magical energy. Her friends protest that there’s hardly any distinction there but Tornbjorg ignores the debate going on. She isn’t going to balk at this just because her foe happens to have some additional protection.

“Heh. So that’s why you chose these terms. Didn’t want to get burned?”

“It’s just a quicker way to get this done and make the difference between us clear. You can surrender if you want, that would be enough to clearly show a victor and a loser.”

“You’re joking.”

“Well, at least you’ve got guts. I suppose it’s my turn now in that case.”

With their brief exchange out of the way, Erik now switches roles and goes on the offensive. His secret now revealed he doesn’t pay as much mind to his defenses. While she’s always up for a challenge this admittedly makes it quite difficult for Tornbjorg. Going up against an opponent who already out skills her and does not need to worry about her counterattacks will never be an easy task. A scratch to his leg is met with another cut to her cheek this time. Her defense is swept aside as he once again counters her attempt to retaliate with the butt of his spear, more successfully this time. Although she likes to take everything head-on, Tornbjorg is quickly realizing that this is going nowhere for her. So for her next counter, she abandons any graceful techniques and instead swings her spear full force, even if he doesn’t need to defend himself against damage the attack still makes some distance between them similar to the punch and she uses the opportunity to use her superior speed to disappear into the forest.

“Running? I guess I was wrong about you at least having the guts to face me.” Her expression sours hearing this taunt but to put this guy in his place she’s willing to ignore it for a moment or two. She looks around the environment. Trees, a creek, a rockface. Hmm, maybe… she looks at the spear she was given. From what she had seen so far the spears are crafted with Aprósopi Aíma Tu Ári, any other metal would have been damaged in a battle like this but the spear remains in flawless form. This can work.

“Where are you?” Although Erik enjoyed the opportunity to taunt his opponent further he was getting genuinely frustrated, having been looking for her for a little while with no sign of her so far. Had she truly ran and admitted defeat? Disgraceful.

This thought is quickly driven from his mind however as an attack suddenly comes from his side “Right here!” He instinctively manages to deflect the attack at the last second and although he is put on the backfoot briefly he once again takes control of the battle with superior skill and lessened damage. He pushes back on her forcing her to take the backfoot now. She hadn’t just attacked with the intention of returning to the same situation however and unknown to Erik this is going flawlessly according to plan.

After taking another cut, Tornbjorg roars and once again abandons grace, winding up for a powerful kick. It’s easily predictable and Erik once again taunts “This again? Come on then, hit me and let’s see if it works better than the last few times.” He not only does not do anything to stop her but he even spreads his arms to completely open his defense as she closes in again and delivers a powerful kick that sends him flying backward into the rockface but once again just like the punch he only feels some minor pain,  no real damage had been done. “Really you’re embarrassing yourself, just-” he stops talking as he hears a loud cracking sound. He looks around for the source as the cracking continues until realizing it’s behind him.

Tornbjorg had spent her time hidden using the spear to strategically weaken a portion of the rockface and used Erik’s body as a projectile to deliver an impact that would act as the final straw on the camel’s back. The rockface splits apart and comes tumbling down at the Faceless. He is forced to dodge the falling rocks, although they don’t have the same force behind them as the attacks he had already taken, the continuous weight of one could potentially crush him slowly and even if it didn’t he doesn’t have the strength to push a rock off if it pins him down which would immobilize him. This is when Tornbjorg’s superior agility comes in as she runs in for another attack while he is distracted, easily avoiding the rocks herself. She manages to hit his other arm, waist, and leg in quick succession but once again his artifact gives him the time he needs to compose himself and force her away from him. “Clever trick kid but it didn’t amount to anything. Now give up.”

Now it’s her turn to give him a smug smile “I wouldn’t say it accomplished nothing.” she raises her hand, revealing that in her grip is the artifact that he had been relying on. Her flurry of attacks was only a second distraction on top of the rockfall, allowing her to cut it off of his armor and take it away from him. While she can’t see his face it’s pretty clear he’s surprised as he goes to grab at where the artifact used to be attached to his armor. “You-” he cuts himself off just going for another attack. Tornbjorg steels herself for another exchange of blows, after all, while he’s now vulnerable he is still the better spear fighter.

However, as the two of them once again clash she realizes something. The Faceless is far more unbalanced and reckless with his attacks than before. He had been angered by this outsider managing to outsmart him and momentarily concerned that his flesh is now just as vulnerable as hers. With this realization she drops her own spear as his next thrust comes in, grabbing it with one hand then simultaneously pulling it back and stepping in to push him away, disarming him as well and making him stumble back.

At this point she could probably request a ruling from the overseers, she had successfully disarmed him. Unfortunately for Erik though, she isn’t quite satisfied yet and throws aside this spear too. She wants to prove that her win wasn’t just a lucky break with the environment and now he’s the one in her element.

She once again closes the distance with him, blocking his punch and striking his arm, fracturing it where the spear had previously failed to penetrate. This is where the battle decidedly becomes one-sided as she lays into him. His every attempt at a counter is blocked or used to throw him into a nearby tree or rock. He may have bested her with the spear but Tornbjorg had taken down countless beasts and many warriors with her fists. Now she has the advantage in both stats and skill and he cannot touch her again. Only able to do his best to mitigate the beatdown.

Once she feels the point had been made she kicks up her spear from the ground, sweeps his legs from under him, and presses the tip against his chin. If she had not stopped she would have pierced his skull and removed his helm in one move, a double win against a faceless, and the duel is over.

“Tch. I guess I underestimated you after all. Fine, clearly Nýr Aldur has produced warriors that can rival us.”

She smiles at him again and pulls away the spear “And that’s all I wanted to hear, so I believe that concludes our business.” She hands the spear back to the Faceless overseer and tosses the artifact back to its owner. “Come on, let’s head back.” She says as she begins walking away with her friends. As they leave she hears Erik yell out some final parting words “You would have made one hell of an Aprósopi!”