Survival Of The Fittest

Benjamin J. Powell was in trouble. Accidentally coming early to practise by half an hour, he decided that he may as well get out some of the gear out of the closet and be useful. Unfortunately, the masks were in a bag on the top shelf and being the less-than-muscly person, had managed to somehow get the bag to rip in two and fall on the ground with a smash, sprawling silver helmets everywhere.

Nice going. What are we going to do about that bag?
Shut up and let me think.
But I am the thing that thinks for you, so I can't shut up.
…that makes no sense whatsoever. Look, there's gotta be a spare bag around here somewhere to put these in.
I'll take it you're referring to that one over there?

Ben jogged over and picked up the spare striped Hessian bag from inside the cold brick walls of the closet. Sighing, he started to pick up random masks from around the place.

Could be worse. Asher and Derek could have been here.
At least they'd help after laughing, unlike you, brain.

Alice did not like being early. She didn't like standing around waiting for whatever it was she was there for the start. So why, exactly, was she showing up early for fencing? Because Victoria was at work and she had nothing else to do in the meantime. Nothing planned except fencing and a rendezvous with Victoria once she got off work. In three. Long. Hours. So, she decided that she might as well practice her fencing before anyone else decided to show up.

Her plans were cut short when she stepped inside the the studio and saw another student, Benjamin. She liked Ben, well, as much as she liked anyone, but she had heart set on some 'Alice' time, by herself. It could be worse, at least. It could have been Asher. If it was the other male, she'd have turned around and left, coming back later, closer to the time the meeting started. She honestly didn't know what Victoria saw in him, but that was then, this was now. She didn't fall into the habit of judging people, so she really didn't have anything else to say about it.

She lingered in the doorway for a moment, debating whether to stay of go before walking inside. Her foot steps were silent, and she guessed that Ben didn't know she was in the room at all. She set her school bag down against the wall before turning to Ben, trying to see what it was he was doing. Her eyes fell on the ripped bag, then the masks all over the floor before sighing softly. She started to pick them up without a word, finally making her presence known when she handed Ben a few of the masks.

Ben did a double-take when Alice handed him a few helmets. "Jesus, I didn't hear you come in. What are you, a ninja or something?"

Finally, with a few more helmets thanks to Alice, he managed to clean up the mess. Running a hand through his messed up hair, he muttered "I think it took a week to tidy up that mess. Thanks for the help."

Alice was a bit of an odd one in Bens books. She joined the school around the same time as he did, and was one of the quietest people he knew. She didn't talk much about herself. The most he knew that was extremely personal was that she had her own apartment that she paid for herself in a part time job. Oh, and she was with Victoria, resident party girl and Ashers ex. Victoria was nice, but put her toe over the line a lot. It was always weird how life played out. Her arms and neck always seemed to be slightly scarred as well.

She was a outlier, something that should fit in, but just… didn't.

He took a momentary glance at his watch. It seems like Asher was going to be late. Then again, it seemed like the coach was going to be late as well. Everyone seemed to be running late. Rolling his head around, he casually said "So, want to practice? I'm bored out of my mind, so…", leaving the sentence hanging.

Alice stood as Ben finished with the masks. She did a cursory glance around the room before deciding that all the masks were accounted for. Ben's voice brought her eyes back to him. She nodded, still silent. She offered a hand to help him up, returning to her bag against the wall after she did. After a second of rummaging, she removed her phone and flipped it open, checking the time displayed on the main screen. When he spoke again she glanced over her shoulder, her jet black hair obstructing her eye as she did. None the less, she nodded. "Okay."

She stowed her phone back in her bag before walking over to the lockets containing the equipment. She entered her combination on the lock before opening her locker. She glanced over her shoulder again. "How long do you think this we take?" She asked, glancing back to remove her gear, piece by piece. The only item she put in was her leather jacket, which she set on the hook. With the jacket gone, she was left in a black t-shirt, and the scars on her right arm were exposed, visible from the elbow down. Peeking along the collar of her shirt were more scars, focused primarily on the right side of her neck.

Finally, she shrugged, gathering her equipment in her hands and walking over the to the changing rooms. Stepping inside, she set her clothing on the floor before turning and closing the door. She shed her jeans and t-shirt, leaving her in her underwear while she folded and set them in a pile opposite her protective clothing. Once that was done, she turned to the other pile, taking the customary white pants first and slipping them on. She followed with plastic chest protector that female fencers were required to wear. After that was the plastron, then glove, and finally the jacket. She took her normal clothing under one arm and her boots in the other before stepping back out.

The locker was still open, and she put her clothing inside, pausing to remove her helmet before closing and locking it. She nodded up at Ben as she knelt to put her boots on, setting her mask on the ground as she did. After her second boot was on, she stood, taking her helmet in her hand as she went over to the cabinet containing the various blades. She stood there, her eyes traveling over the various weapons before removing a Sabre. "Ready when you are." She said without turning, raising the blade to eye level and inspecting the edge.

"Okay."

Ben gave a small smile. "Bring it." He grabbed the bags and followed Alice into the locker room. Quickly twisting the combo-lock around and opening the door, he grabbed out

"How long do you think this will take?"

"If no-one else turns up after our bout, I'll just head off. No point in hanging around much. So we'll give them 10 minutes, eh?"

Ben watched as she silently snuck into the changerooms. Jogging over to the equipment, he started to pull out items. He was already wearing navy tracksuit pants with the school colours striped diagonally on one leg, and it was just a practise, so he just grabbed a small plastron and slightly dirty white jacket, stepping through the leghole. From the bag he fished out a medium sized helmet with a blue neck.

Walking back to his locker, he got out his fencing glove and his foil. Ben paused to think.

Alice is a good all rounder, slightly better in defence, so… I'd better lure her into traps. Get her to attack, and then I'll parry and riposte. I'll use a French grip.

Screwing on the long handle, he slowly got up and turned around to the door. He didn't have to wait long before Alice came out standing tall and proud in full uniform. He grinned and shook his head under the steel mask. "Let me tell you, when you're gonna do something, you go overboard with it". Ben moved his blade to his shoulder.

"Sabre, first to 5, no time limit. And please, no bullshit fencing. I hate that crap. That OK for you?"

((Asher Kerrington continued from Music of the Spheres))

Asher burst through the gym doors, running for the locker room. He was late. So late. Two people were already fencing, and-

...Two people were fencing.

Asher slowed, turning his head to the pair. It seemed that the match had barely started...well, what harm was there in watching? He set his bag down and sat next to it.

Okay. The one over there is Ben. He thought as he heard the person speak. His lip curled at the phrase 'bullshit fencing'. Did he mean dirty hits? Ooh, too bad...Asher could strike so well that a dirty hit looked legit. And the one over there is...

His eyes scanned the other figure. Tall, slender, and...was that a chest protector? He frowned. It was Alice.

Now, it may have been said before, but Asher disapproved of women. This one, though...she got under his skin. What was it about her that ticked him off so much? Her proud stance? The fact that she was taller than him? That she gave him no respect when he was dating that Victoria girl?

Maybe it was all of that, but it was mostly because she fenced, too. He reminded her of this one time, when that strange club of weirdos (The anime club? The fuck was anime?) got to show a movie in the auditorium. It was one of those weird mindfuck movies, with lesbians and girls turning into cars and whatnot; Heaven help him if he even wanted to remember the name. One character that stood out, however, was a tall girl with long, curly orange hair, who fenced well and had a powerful presence. That girl had reminded him of a graceful jungle cat, ready to pounce, and coincidentally, so did Alice.

By the time she turned around, Ben was already suited up. It seemed like he didn't feel it necessary to wear the full uniform. Fine. She tossed her Sabre from hand to hand as she crossed the room to where Ben stood. Offering a slight smile at his comment, she slipped her helmet on, pausing to fasten it.

He went over the rules for the skirmish, and Alice waited patiently. The sound of the gym door opening caught her attention briefly and she glanced in the direction the sound came from. A boy, a little shorter then her, though the only reason she knew that was because she recognized the boy. In a rare display of emotion, she felt her lip curl in disgust.

She did not like Asher Kerrington. Not. One. Bit. Granted, she really only knew him from Victoria. The times they had to interact here, at Fencing, were fortunately few and few between. She'd asked Victoria about him once, particularly what she saw in him. You know, looking back, she managed to avoid answering. At least Alice knew how she felt about him. A misogynistic bastard with questionable morals. It gave her some satisfaction that he did not like her either.

After a moment, she looked away, satisfied that he wasn't going to come all the way over, probably content to watch. Fine with her. She liked to maintain a reasonable distance from him at all times. Right now, she focused on Ben.

Alice nodded, in response to his statement about the rules, which he was just finishing as she looked back. Dirty fighting, eh? He must be mistaking me for Asher. Thinking idly, she slid into the traditional stance of the French fencing style.

"I'll start, alright?"

Her voice, as per standard, was quiet, almost to the point of being too hard to hear. Even still, she was sure she heard him. A roll of her shoulders and she was ready. The point of her Sabre was held out in front of her, the tip wavering ever so slightly.

In a quick movement, she stepped forward, her Sabre flashing as it thrust towards his side, her foot touching the ground a second a split second later, after the blade would connect should Ben parry in time. She was careful to focus more on speed then strength as she moved, partly to increase her chances of making a hit, and partly because he wasn't wearing the full protective gear.

Tip toe, tip toe.

The door to the gymnasium opened quietly and was closed a few seconds later. Irina Burlachenko entered with an embarrassed smile at those present and jogged quietly to the locker room, where she deposited her backpack. She had seen the two people fencing, and decided to wait until they were finished to suit up. Besides, it'd be easier to relax and watch if she was just in her cloth clothing. Gazing into the mirror on the inside of her locker, Irina examined herself for a moment. She tied her hair back with a scrunchie and flashed a smile. Ugh, she had crow's feet. 1:00 AM wasn't THAT late. With a sigh, Irina closed her locker door and left the room.

Still moving quietly, Irina kept her eyes on the two fencing and gave an assuring nod to both of them, mouthing the word 'Sorry' for her lateness. Irina stopped moving when she happened upon Asher Kerrington. One of the people on her team that she hadn't gotten to know. Irina smiled at Asher and stood next to him to observe the match. "I guess we're both late." she whispered, hoping that her voice was low enough that it didn't distract the two fencers.

Irina watched the match with interest, analyzing her teammates' strengths and faults. They really were all well-coordinated, each of them with a unique ability that added to the overall effectiveness of the group. Irina knew that her uncanny speed was what got her onto the team, while the others were more varied in their skills. Irina shook her head, knocking herself out of the short moment of introversion so that she could focus on the match.

((OOC: Bullshit fencing is pretty much what everyone has said here, but is usually expanded to silly timewasting techniques (you know, just standing still for a long time, waving your blade around stupidly) and legal but frowned upon techniques (eg, aiming for the crotch area in foil, while being a valid target, HURTS LIKE HELL.) Also, excuse the fact that this is not written very well. ))

Creeeeek! Ben moved his head to the door.

Asher. God, he was either insane or cunning when it came to fencing. Probably both, or maybe just a magnificent bastard. He was the most yellow carded person that Ben had seen. He gave a small nod to his rival underneath the helmet. Even though Asher was the better technical fencer, Ben always managed to find a way to get close enough to always be close to his score. In tournaments, there was no closer battle. Granted, Asher had the upper hand in most bouts and came out on top, but there was always that rare upset. The main problem was Ben's stamina. It just didn't last for that last 3 minute round.

Asher didn't seem to want to view the bout closer than the door. Strange, he would usually try to ref a bout.

"I'll start, alright?"

"OK then." He rested himself into the en garde position, blade in sixth.
"Ready. Fence."

In a quick movement, she stepped forward, her Sabre flashing as it thrust towards his side, her foot touching the ground a second a split second later, after the blade would connect should Ben parry in time.

Shit that was QUICK he thought as he tried to retreat, stretching his aim in a circular parry, desperately trying to dodge the blade. The silver point was close… closer… Bam. He felt the tip digging into his rib, his parry swishing the blade away mere milliseconds too late.

"Halt, this is the attack. Hit to the left. One love to Alice." he called out, acknowledging the point. Sighing, he stepped back to the centre of the room, his head shaking. "Should have blocked that sooner" he whispered under his breath before calling out the words.

"En garde, Ready? Fence!"

This time Ben started to engage, threating Alice with a feint to the left flank, extending his arm before lunging, pushing his leg out with speed and striking out, aiming for Alice's head.

Alice felt no satisfaction at making a hit on her first strike. No swell of pride, no grin at already being in the lead. Just the same neutral expression as always. Mostly, it was because she was aware how quickly this could turn around. It was only the first point after. She'd be a fool to celebrate now. Instead, she nodded as he called out the point, waiting for him to make his move.

In the back of her mind, she hoped that one way or another, this was over soon. She enjoyed fencing, it being one of her only real hobbies, but she just wasn't feeling it today. It wasn't like she she had anywhere else to be, either. Victoria still at work, she'd be alone most likely even if she wasn't here. It was always like that. If she wasn't with Victoria, she missed her. A sort of...aimless feeling almost. As much as she liked, loved, Victoria, she hated that feeling.

The door opening a second time brought her away from her thoughts, but she didn't take her eyes from Ben.

This time Ben started to engage, threatening Alice with a feint to the left flank, extending his arm before lunging, pushing his leg out with speed and striking out, aiming for Alice's head.

When he did move, she was ready. As the point of his blade flashed towards her, she stepped forward, bending the leg in front of her while straightening her back leg, leaning to the right as she did, just enough to avoid his blade. With that movement, she effectively ducking away from her first strike and avoided the strike that the first would have left her open for.

It was a clever move, admittedly. Had she not been paying attention, or maybe a second slower, she'd have taken the hit. Fortunately for her, neither of those thing were true. In the position she was in, she thrust her blade forward again, this time for the center of his chest.

As the point of his blade flashed towards her, she stepped forward, bending the leg in front of her while straightening her back leg, leaning to the right as she did, just enough to avoid his blade.

Ben winced as his attack flew straight past Alice's head, leaving him open in his lunge. Moving his weight to his back leg, he franticly tried to recover backwards before she took a stab at an attack of her own.

In the position she was in, she thrust her blade forward again, this time for the center of his chest.

Oh crap. Taking a step backwards, he tried to get his blade to hers in a downwards smash of rods, moving diagonally from the left of Alice's face down to the lower half of the attack area. The line of steel speedily whipped down, smashing both blades into Ben's leg, jolting both of their hands.

"Halt! This is the attack, it is no. This is the attack, it is off-target." he quickly reeled off before yelling "Jesus Christ, that hurt!"

Shaking his front leg up and down to get the blood running, he slowly got back to en garde after a few seconds of walking around. "Maybe I should have gone full uniform, eh?" he joked, letting out a slightly pained chuckle. The blade didn't do anything significant, but it still annoyed him to no end. Hopefully it didn't affect him too much... he hoped.

"En guarde. Ready? Fence!"

Asher was enthralled with Ben and Alice's bout. As much as he disliked Alice, he had to admit that she was good...both of them were. As his eyes followed the paths of each blade, he heard a low voice whisper to him He looked up, and his eyes widened slightly.

It was Irina, the foreign exchange student and fencing team captain. Even he knew that she deserved some semblance of respect, and as such, he nodded.

"I guess so," He whispered back, his eyes flickering back to the match. He winced when Ben got hit in the leg. "Careful, man!" He shouted, hoping that Ben could bring his game in time to make a comeback.

((OOC: Now, this might be me being a trifle dense, but did that last count as a hit or not? I couldn't really tell.))

Alice took a quick step back to her original position as Ben cried out in pain. The tip of her Sabre lowered, and she relaxed from her stance enough to express her concern. "Are you alright?" She asked, raising her voice enough for him to hear her. "I'm sorry about that." From where she was standing, he didn't look injured, but she's been fencing long enough to know that it had to hurt, that much was certain. I bet he's regretting not wearing the full uniform now. She thought, a small smile spreading across her lips as she did.

Passing the blade back and forth in her hands, she stepped back to her position as Ben recovered. It seemed that she was right about the pain he was in. His chuckle was enough to clue her in on that.

When he finally seemed ready, she passed her blade to her right hand. He'd probably take her more seriously now, if he wasn't before.

"En garde, then."

With that quick warning, she resumed her position, the tip of her Sabre pointing out in front of her, her shoulders relaxed, her feet grounded below her. She watched Ben ready himself, her expression as neutral as it always was.

Satisfied that he was as ready as he was going to be, she moved forward, right foot braced in front of her as made her move. Her blade moved in front of her, feinting towards his mask before moving toward her true target, which she was counting on being exposed as Ben moved to counter her feint. Instead of his mask, the tip of her sword thrust toward his stomach.

With her foot braced against the ground, her movement had more strength behind it this time, as opposed to her lighter but quicker strikes before. Make no mistake, this attack wasn't lacking in speed, but it didn't move at the velocity of her prior attacks. She hoped that the extra strength would be enough to make contact even if he anticipated her feint.

((OOC: Didn't count, a hit below the waist in Sabre is off-target. Oh, and I've retconned the battle from 10 hits to 5 otherwise we'll be here forever.))

She moved forward, right foot braced in front of her as made her move. Her blade moved in front of her, going towards his mask…

Ben immediately stepped backwards, rasing his blade to Sixte to attempt to parry and gain the right of way. It didn't hit him that Alice's blade was going slower that all of her other attacks until it was almost too late.

…before moving toward her true target, which she was counting on being exposed as Ben moved to counter her feint. Instead of his mask, the tip of her sword thrust toward his stomach.

Ben softly swore inside his helmet. The first move wasn't an attack, it was bait! It was a goddamn feint!

He quickly moved his blade downwards, in a hope to parry and get right of way. The two swords moved quickly, but to Ben it was slow as a turtle. The blades were getting closer together, closer to Bens gut, until finally, almost simultaneously, the blades came together... Just half a second after it had hit his stomach. He continued his attack and hit Alice in the chest softly before working out that it was over, and hastly called out "Halt" before withdrawing.

"This is the attack, parry disengaged, attack continues and it is good, then continuation. The score is two-love to Alice."

Rolling his head around in his mask, he groaned at his luck. In the first three attacks, he had failed to block two of them and on the other one managed to get it smashed into his leg. He had to get his head back into this game somehow, otherwise he risked having a bagel match, and Ben did not want to lose to Alice 5-0. He had to be serious about this.

Sliding his feet into position, he bounced gently on the heels of his feet, thinking of a way to get around her defences.

"Ready. Fence."

The second he said this, he took three steps backwards, out of Alice's lunge range.

If she attacks, I'll parry, gain right of way and lunge.
If she stays and tries to defend, I'll just beat her blade and attack.
I've got to get those 2 points back.

The shock of impact ran along her arms the blades collided. At first, she didn't think it would be enough, that her attack would be repelled or turned back on her. Despite that, she went trough with the movement, disregarding the possibility that it would backfire. If so, they'd only be tied.

She put a last burst of strength in her attack, pushing the blade those last few inches to Ben's stomach a few seconds before his blade touched against her chest. When he broke off the attack and called out the score, she stepped back as well, to her starting position.

One might assume that if Alice were more open with her emotions, a proud smile might be seen on her features should her helmet be removed. Instead, the slight set of her jaw, a furrowed brow, both would hint at her determination to come out of this bout the victor.

She watched in silence as he moved back and forth, apparently readying himself for her next move. She wasn't surprised when he moved back after he announced the continuation of the fight. He was out of her immediate range now. What was the saying? Fool me once...? Whatever it was, it wouldn't be enough.

She took a quick step forward, straightening her back leg again as she bended her front. There was no attack to dodge this time, but the movement did afford her some extra range. Not a lot, granted, but maybe enough to get a hit in without risking getting his herself.

No feint this time, just a quick lunge with a fast thrust aimed squarely at the side of his body facing her, the point of her blade racing toward his ribs. She decided to forgo the strength she favored with her last blow, this time hoping to catch him off guard using her excellent speed to her advantage.