It seemed in the silence between them that little had changed.
It also seemed that little remained the same.
Raymond's tail lay in an easy arc. Asterion may have been an opponent, but he was no enemy to be insulted with a display of pointless menace. He seemed driven - ever in search of his best self - and that was a horse he could understand. Did the bay remember what he said about the child he found on the Grenton River? Would such a long memory help or hurt him in this brief exchange?
The copper stallion tilted his blade in the barest semblance of a habitual salute as Asterion nodded, but his mind wandered to Ruth. That wave would have signaled for her to leave him in search of safer ground. She was - had been - undeniably fierce, but so much spirit poured into the mold of such a little cat posed only a liability in battle.
In the end, that caution hadn't mattered.
With a heavy exhale, Raymond stalked into motion, circling until the afternoon sun was at his back. Asterion was taller and more massive than he was despite their similarly lithe builds, but Raymond had the advantage of reach and a far more worrisome handshake. And while Raymond didn't have to think hard about which of the two had more experience, he would have died years ago had he ever stooped so low as to think that would tip the scales in his favor. The edge, then, would be determined by adaptation and split-second strategy.
With the sun at his back and but a few horselengths separating them, Raymond sprang into action. He lunged toward Asterion at a slight angle, tilting a bit toward Asterion's rear as he brought his hindquarters to bear with tail blade arced high and poised to strike at Asterion's face.
But Raymond had no intention of giving Asterion a new facial scar to write home about. While bringing his tail blade to bear, the red stallion shifted his weight to his outside legs and lifted his inside foreleg to rake down the bay's lower hind leg. Ideally, the feint would have...inspired Asterion to plant his rear hooves and pivot his front end away, leaving the hind legs vulnerable to attack. Even a glancing blow might help rein in the power or speed of Asterion's actions moving forward.
That is, of course, assuming Asterion reacted the way Raymond expected.
Raymond.
and at his feet they'll cast their golden crowns
when the man comes around
and at his feet they'll cast their golden crowns
when the man comes around
Summary: Raymond charged Asterion with the sun at his back. Feinting a strike at Asterion's face with his tail blade, he actually aimed an attack at Asterion's lower hind leg with his near front hoof hoping that the feint would have caused Asterion to plant his hind feet in an effort to turn away from his blade.
Attack Used: 1
Attack(s) Left: 1
Block Used: 0
Block(s) Left: 1
Item(s) Used: None
Response Deadline: 05/03/2018
Tags: @Asterion, @
