[Arena] Shadowfall - Daedalus vs. Swift Squall

[Dio]

Beauty had a way of working itself into the harshest of circumstances.  Whitescar was a cruel land; uncompromising, unyielding.  The heart of its power was reflected in the will of its native people.  It was a will Daedalus respected and, dare he say, feared.  But he was not here today to wine and dine among the Caribou nor participated in a great wild hunt for an ice wurm among the crags of the Serpent’s Spine.  His task was more immediate, more personal.

 

Daedalus had watched arena matches come and go, displays of aggression and showmanship, of violence and of rage.  The matches had come and gone and with each one a new set of parameters to study and analyze.  The most curious of all was the latest match, one between a unicorn and Jarl Sigrun herself.  While Sigrun’s victory was to be expected, there will still many questions left with regards to the lone unicorn she matched steel with.  “Hail Line” was obviously an alias and during the fight itself, it became immediately obvious whom he was dealing with.  “Hail Line” had a rap sheet with REIN a mile long.  It was a wonder he hadn’t been exposed in public before, if not by REIN then by his own incredible antics.  Still, he was a formidable combatant and Daedalus was determined not to underestimate him.

 

And thus when the lottery was pulled, Daedalus considered carefully what to do with his next matchup.  Even with the various tools and skills he had acquired in his travels, Daedalus was never trained formally as a soldier.  There had never been a need in the past.  But perhaps this was what he needed if he was going to be ready for the future.  Still, a straight head to head fight would be unfavorable for the dark mage.  Misdirection and mind games would still be king in this contest, as “Hail Line” had quite the penchant for philosophizing mid fight.

 

As the gates closed behind him, Daedalus trained his gaze forward, peering out from just behind a mage’s cloak and cowl, leaving only his muzzle exposed to view.  A faint glow emanated from beneath the shadow of the cowl, outlining a horn and a pair of eyes.  The glow spread across his body, highlighting features as it went, specifically the faint hexagonal tattoos snaking around his left front leg.  Satisfied with his self-diagnostics, Daedalus stepped forward, speaking to his opponent for the first time.

 

“Shall we begin, Swift Squall?”

 

[Ciraxis]

It really was supposed to be simpler. Fabricate your own death, join secret unit to oppose world threats, train for three months to get yourself back into shape and finally test yourself out in the Whitescar Arena. Nothing complicated.

 

But what Swift Squall didn't expected was being utterly trounced by Jarl Askr. Oh sure some would tell that he got a few good shots here and there, but Squall simply known better. He could see that she was holding back - and yet despite this the caribou steamrolled him like juggernaut that she was.

And that in turn brought back a prideful part of him that he thought about as buried long ago. His pride as a warrior could not stand to be beaten so easily - he had to find out the way how to close that gap between skill and power that two possessed. Perhaps the many tales and legends of the past could be of some use? Skilled knight with magical swords, cunning sorcerers, wise warrior-monks and other figures that lived in bygone ages possesed relics and skills that were lost when their time had come.

Maybe with some persistence and hard work some could be recovered?

 

Alas he couldn't leave in search of secret arts of long forgotten fighters and mages. At last not yet. When Swift got into Arena he promised that he would participate in at last three duels before he was able to put Whitescar behind him. Not that anypony would known where to find him if he decided to do so right away. 'Hail Line' was one of long list of masks, disguises and false names under his belt, the only difference being that it was one of few amplified by magic.

But Swift was a Squallcoast and whatever identity they gone with at the moment Squallcoast's always kept their word, and the youngest of them was no exception.

 

So now that 'Hail Line' walked back into arena there was no enthusiasm or aversion in his stance. It was just something that had to be done.

"Let's get this over with," he said to himself, with one of his blades resting on his shoulder.

 

Squall cocked his eyebrow seeing who walks from opposite end. Lean, clock and cowl and that strange purple cloud surrounding him. One hundred percent a spell flinging type. Could be pain. Or not. He didn't cared either way.

"Spectacular. So what's your gimmick?" noblepony asked.

“Shall we begin, Swift Squall?”

 

Swordpony froze for a moment, eyes under his sunglasses widening in surprise. Then without word shifted into combat stance, with three more swords jumping from their scabbards to levitate beside the fourth one.

"Alright now I see what is it." he thought. " I will just pummel him into the ground and find 'When' and 'How' "

Obviously Swift was not very pleased with somepony deducting his identity.

[Dio]

The statement had exactly its intended effect.  The snap to attention meant so long as Daedalus kept pushing the right buttons he could continue to elicit reactions.  So long as he could continue to elicit reactions, he determined the terms of the fight.  Of course, the ability to press those buttons hinged entirely upon being able to avoid falling prey to blade or spell.  It was time to see if all that multitasking practice in Twilight’s lab had paid off.

 

A wave of his horn summoned triangular shards of glowing violet aether.  They twirled and danced before him like a carnival knife-thrower’s blades, each one flourishing before slipping aside for the formation of another one.  One after another, more ethereal daggers coalesced until a ring of a dozen floated around his head like a crown of translucent thorns.  One, two, three, four.  Daedalus counted four blades that Squall held in his magical grip.

 

With calculated precision, the halo splintered, launching blades every which way.  The blazing violet shards looped back in toward the center of the arena, their glowing violet trails zeroing in on Squall’s position.  At the same time, the cloaked form before Squall brandished a pair of fang-like blades that shot forward fast as a viper’s strike.  As expected, three of Squall’s blades spun in defense while the fourth lashed out at his assailant.  Plumes of dust peppered the floor of the arena as magical blades were deflected into the dirt, each shattering in a spray of shimmering fragments that drifted upwards.  With enough shattered blades, the beginnings of a glittering fog began to form at the perimeter of the arena, casting strange dancing lights upon the two fighters.

 

Squall’s thrust was paired with a snap maneuver that placed his head under the path of the twin blades.  The aether shards swished harmlessly overhead and Squall’s sword drove forward firmly into the ribcage of his opponent… or so he thought.  Daedalus’ form seized unnaturally in place as if it had been frozen in a block of ice.  As his illusory clone dissipated in front of Swift Squall, Daedalus lashed out from behind with both word and blade.  Again as expected, Squall parried, blocking the magical rapier’s blade with the steel of a physical sword.

 

“That speech back there in the fight against the Jarl was poetry,” Daedalus was careful to pay more attention to his footwork than to the spacing of his words, but his speech still came through firmly as he leaped backwards to avoid the counterattack.  The words were honeyed, almost complementary.  But in the flick of a tongue they turned sharp.  “Poetry in the midst of a duel?  Are you here to test yourself or show off?”

[Ciraxis]

Before Squall could even proceed with the beatdown he thought about, his opponent pressed into an offense. The cloaked unicorn was very careful with his attack however...perhaps even too much. Swift anger subsided somewhat as he begun to gauge the amount of fighting experience that Daedalus presented.

 

"He is very careful....but that's more of ponysonal character trait then official training. No signs of any material art or weapon training in his movements. Maybe some magic duels or monster hunting under his belt. He keeps way more space between us then necessary." he thought while at the same time both attacking and defending with his weapons.

"Ah, look at that. Very clever." a silent praise passed through noblepoy head as he noticed the cloud of aether dust. "He's planning to gain field advantage. Smokescreen? Or to boost his sorcery? Possibly both." swordstallion decided. Few more exchanged blows resulted in disappearing phantasm.

"Definitely both." Swift confirmed before facing blades of pure magic once more. This time with extra dialogue topping.

 

 

 

“That speech back there in the fight against the Jarl was poetry,” Daedalus was careful to pay more attention to his footwork than to the spacing of his words, but his speech still came through firmly as he leaped backwards to avoid the counterattack.  The words were honeyed, almost complementary.  But in the flick of a tongue they turned sharp.  “Poetry in the midst of a duel?  Are you here to test yourself or show off?”

 

So that cloaked unicorn watched his fight with Sigurn? That means that he already got some insight to Swifts own abilities. That was certainly an advantage for him. However he seemed to draw incomplete conclusions from it. Conviction that Squall will fight him the same way that he did physical powerhouse that was Jarl Askr was one of them. Other was belief that he will be easily provoked by some taunting. Then again he couldn't knew about count participation in events during the attack on Crystal Empire and the first meeting with Bladehymn Sigurn back then.

"I could use that to my advantage. And..." swordpony quickly glanced towards magician legs.

"It seems that he need to consciously think about his positioning. There is no instinctual movement in his hoofwork."

Any leftover anger towards his foe initial words washed away.Most other ponies would give quite a smirk at that moment, but not Swift. His trained visage betrayed nothing of his hidden thoughts.

"Let's play along."

 

Appearing to be even more enraged by clocked stallion words, noblepony leaped forward. Two of his swords move in a scissor maneuver to slice the other stallion into two. As expected one of the magical blades moved to meet the physical one. All part of the ruse of course. This arcane fog may fooled his sight but at edge of his hearing Squall could say that his opponent was already somewhere else. Two more aether swords appeared from nowhere on his right, and other two of his own flew to meet them as he turned to face them.

 

And then in magically enhanced burst of speed, Squall twisted around full 180º and rushed onward to smack - seemingly - empty air with his armored hoof.

 

This magically aided strike, combined with mass that was the double of the that of Maretonian was enough to sent Daedalus flying - out of the arcane mist, and almost to the edge of the Arena. Only last second barrier prevented Squall from breaking his opponent jaw, or maybe even neck.

"I say the former. But if you don't stop being careless you may find yourself in need for epitaph." Swift broke his silence as he himself walked out of glittering shroud. All four of his swords were whirling at blurring speed, making sure to disperse the magical fog behind him.

 

Squall gave the other unicorn long, studious look, before once again turning into a  blue blur. A well timed teleport of the Maretonian moved him away from the sword blow that cracked Arena wall and sent stone shards flying...

 

But not from the well aimed throwing dagger, that pierced the Daedalus hood and forcefully pulled it back.

"You think too much where need to be at given moment. Now a little honesty if you don't mind. Why here? To study? You surely realize that this is something that could only be gained through experience. As it is right now, your battle sense is non-existent." noblepony asked. There was zero malice in his words, as he nonchalantly strolled towards the Maretonian as if they were having discussion over the tea.

"And it's not like there aren't lot of others to choose from. I would safely assume that you watched more then back then. So why choose...?"

[Dio]

Squall thought he was merely careless?  That was cute.  Daedalus may not have been an expert swordfighter, but he was far from a skittish novice.  Multitasking was merely taxing him at the moment.  His attacks in melee were less sloppy strikes than they were extremely conservatively paced probes at Squall’s defenses.  Perhaps a bit too conservative at the moment.

 

The ferocious blow from Squall’s blade came too fast to dodge, but slow enough to parry.  Daedalus allowed his spectral blade to shatter, dispersing the impact as he slid back.  A second strike was deflected into the wall of the arena with enough force to splinter the stone.  Finally, Daedalus moved his head ever so slightly to avoid the thrown dagger directed at his face.  In one deft stroke of a hoof, he unclipped his cloak, allowing the dagger to carry it away, fully unveiling what lay beneath.  He bore nothing else save the hardlight shards that hovered over his chest and shoulders like softly glowing wisps of faerie fire.  Compared to his heavily armed and armored opponent, Daedalus appeared downright vulnerable.

 

"You think too much where need to be at given moment. Now a little honesty if you don't mind. Why here? To study? You surely realize that this is something that could only be gained through experience. As it is right now, your battle sense is non-existent."

 

And there it was: the typical noble snark, the patronizing propriety of presumed noblesse oblige.  Daedalus couldn’t help but smirk.  The paradoxical position of being flattered that his vagabond mage persona stood up to scrutiny clashed mentally with the truth of his noble upbringing.  But he could work with this.  Any surprise to spring was another tool in Daedalus’ arsenal.

 

“I highly doubt you want a lecture on meta-cognition in the middle of a fight,” Daedalus grinned as he summoned a new weapon, this one a polearm.  “But I assure you education and ‘battle-sense’ come in many different flavors, my own included.”

 

"And it's not like there aren't lot of others to choose from. I would safely assume that you watched more then back then. So why choose...?"

 

“You do realize they run a lottery for determining matches, right?  It would be impolite to back out when my name is drawn.”  The irony was comical.  Daedalus didn’t choose his opponent at all; and that was the real truth.  “I didn’t choose my opponent, only how to fight him.”

 

His horn, eyes, and tattoo sleeve thrummed in perfect synchronization as he slowly circled Squall.  The debris from shattered illusory blades swirled away from Daedalus’ opponent, leaving a clear space amidst the cloud in which they could brawl.  Daedalus adopted a defensive stance, keeping the spectral spear pointed toward Squall at all times.  Jabs and feints were made, but no attacks committed until Daedalus finally thrust his polearm forward.  It was an overextension, exposing Daedalus for a split second.

 

Squall saw his opening and lunged, slipping past the spearpoint, batting away the haft, and driving his blade forward.  Daedalus adjusted his stance, rearing up as the blade approached, using the slanted panels of hardlight to deflect the sword point into the ground harmlessly.  Squall’s secondary blades twirled and prepared to come crashing down upon Daedalus’ head.  But with a flick of his wrist and a quickly grunted spell, the spectral spear that Squall had so casually brushed aside shattered in a burst of blinding light, leaving only a glittering cloud of aether shards that rapidly dispersed into the air around them.

 

“My turn.”

 

No battle-hardened soldier like Squall was going to be incapacitated for long, but the momentary distraction was enough for Daedalus to slip in close and jam his hoof into Squall’s chestplate.  The hexagons tattooed to his flesh seemed to ripple as the spell discharged.  A raucous WHIP-CRACK of thunder pealed between them.  Squall was suddenly airborne, launched as if struck by a titanic hammer.  One sword remained in his aetheric grasp, but the rest streaked way at breakneck speed from the force of impact, crashing to a halt only when they hit the walls of the arena, firmly embedding themselves in the stone.

 

“I’m here to test myself, turn theory into practice, and push the very limits of what I can accomplish.  I am here to hone my greatest weapon: my mind.”  Daedalus strode forward, sweat now visible on his brow from the exertion.  In spite of it, however, his voice held firm, showing no sign of fatigue.  “If there is a show to be associated with it, so be it.  I am not ashamed to being self-centered about my personal education.”

 

Daedalus waved his horn and a spectral maul coalesced into existence at his beckoning.  In spite of the gravity of the fight, Daedalus’ playful lilt had returned, seeping into his words as he approached Squall’s landing place.  “You twist words as if you intend to teach but everything you have shown me thus far speaks only of patronization and misplaced noble obligation.  If you enjoy making show, at least be honest about it!”

 

[Ciraxis]

On 18.12.2015 at 8:43 AM, Dio said:

“You do realize they run a lottery for determining matches, right?  It would be impolite to back out when my name is drawn.”  The irony was comical.  Daedalus didn’t choose his opponent at all; and that was the real truth.  “I didn’t choose my opponent, only how to fight him.”

 

"Then it seem that fate has penchant of making things as irritable as possible." with a quick summation 'Hail' dismissed the issue.

What followed was a quick exchange of blows, ultimately making Squall to feel like an idiot.

"How many times I am going to fell for those?" he thought when after series of feints, yet another weapon shattered. His irritation about himself was enough of distraction close the distance and struck him with a point blank magic.

Squall recognized the spell. It was affectionately named 'Sky Rocket' by many soldiers, and boy - as Squall could experience right now - did it deserved this nickname. Sent flying high, unicorn had plenty of time to think about the errors he made.

Until a rather unpleasant contact with ground was made that is. Despite protective breastplate Squall could hear - and more importantly, fell - a bone giving in. Great. Once more, one more rib broken. This started to become a running gag in it's repetitiveness.

And yet things could be worse, especially since Swift expected to be...kind of hit harder. Oh sure the spell that Daedalus hit him with sent him on quite an air trip, but after you experience being slammed by kraken's tentacle, thrown through a concrete and brick walls, surviving an ocean cruiser literally breaking in two and other things like that you start to built up a resistance.

As he started to pick himself up more words of Daedalus reached his ears. But there was also something else. Swordstallion sharp hearing caught a sound of breathing much more shallow then it ought to be. The other unicorn may be able to mask it with firm words but he can't fool Squall's ears.

 

 

On 18.12.2015 at 8:43 AM, Dio said:

“I’m here to test myself, turn theory into practice, and push the very limits of what I can accomplish.  I am here to hone my greatest weapon: my mind.”

 

"Hone your stamina first. Somepony didn't ate his cereal." noblepony interrupted him while stretching his neck. "For the amount of crap you been throwing around you barely hurt me, and you halfway out of steam already. And I only need one good hit."

 

 

On 18.12.2015 at 8:43 AM, Dio said:

“If there is a show to be associated with it, so be it.  I am not ashamed to being self-centered about my personal education.”

 

"Well congratulations then. You completely missed the point of what gaining knowledge should be about." Swift growled in response. This guy was so much stuck in his own arse that he started to get on his nerves. How fortunate that he was here to punch his face.

 

 

On 18.12.2015 at 8:43 AM, Dio said:

Daedalus waved his horn and a spectral maul coalesced into existence at his beckoning.  In spite of the gravity of the fight, Daedalus’ playful lilt had returned, seeping into his words as he approached Squall’s landing place.  “You twist words as if you intend to teach but everything you have shown me thus far speaks only of patronization and misplaced noble obligation.”

 

".....I am hearing this from a guy who admitted about being selfish few seconds ago." noblepony mumbled to himself in 'You-Got-To-be-Kidding-Me' tone of voice. At the same time he wondered how much that spectral maul would slow Daedalus down if at all. Even if made from magic it was very unwieldy weapon for somepony who had so little combat experience. Which quite propably meant that real Daedalus was somewhere else.

 

On 18.12.2015 at 8:43 AM, Dio said:

 “ If you enjoy making show, at least be honest about it!”

 

"If you enjoy talking that much get yourself a job as an orator." unicorn snarked right back. "Or better yet stand-up comedian seeing that two-thirds of the stuff that comes from your mouth is rubbish." he added while shifting into combat stance.

"Unlucky for you, funny ends now." with those final words swordstallion charged forward, his form blurring out from sheer speed. But halfway through the distance, disguised pony leaped to aside. At the same time numerous round objects flew from under his duster, exploding upon contact with arena floor. Smoke bombs! Now a thick haze completely obscured vision of both ponies. Daedalus could hear armor clunking, followed by a complete silence. Most likely Squall jumped through the air and then lowered himself carefully through magic.

Swift himself was quite as a mouse, moving only his ear back and forth to find from where his foe will come.

Suddenly a glow of spectral hammer appeared on his side, it's glow prompting to turn towards. His sole remaining weapon seemingly moved to redirect arc of maul's swing, his body ready to jump aside....

Only to leap towards a yelp of surprise and pain. Unlike other weapons the magical hammer simply disappeared instead of hsattering, as it's maker focus slipped for a moment.

'"Not so nimble now eh?." Squall growled as he headbutted the other unicorn to prevent him from casting a spell. Not slowing down, Swift grappled still staggering unicorn and hurled him over his shoulder, in a telekinesis-aided judo throw. Daedalus was involuntarily sent flying across a Arena with only it's walls stopping an aerial journey.

Only now as he slumped down magician could see what hurt his hooves so much. Caltrops! An accursed, razor sharp caltrops dispersed under shroud of darkness. Seeing that Swift wore thick, adamantium leg armor while Maretonian wore...well nothing, it it was safe to assume that swordpony threw those little devils everywhere he could.

"I am not done yet." came a voice from the dark. Noblepony poured his energy in his lone remaining blade before taking a swing twoards where Daedalus should be laying. A loud, ear splitting scrape was heard as a shockwave sliced through both the stone floor and air alike. It wasn't magic per se. Rather a razor sharp vacuum created by draft of the cut. And it was heading towards arcanist right now.

[Dio]

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"Hone your stamina first. Somepony didn't eaten his cereal." noblepony interrupted him while stretching his neck. "For the amount of crap you been throwing around you barely hurt me, and you halfway out of steam already. And I only need one good hit."

Daedalus cracked a smile, half nervous, half excited.  Now came the hard part.  Squall was as good as he’d advertised and he’d just dropped the proverbial gauntlet.  There would be no further soft-hoofing.  But Daedalus knew he was in the home stretch.  Just a little longer and--

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"Well congratulations then. You completely missed the point of what gaining knowledge should be about." Swift growled in response.

"If you enjoy talking that much get yourself a job as an orator." unicorn snarked right back. "Or better yet stand-up comedian seeing that two-thirds of the stuff that comes from your mouth is rubbish." he added while shifting into combat stance.

Daedalus sniffed at the remark.  Noblesse Oblige and the disdain of privilege.  It never ended.

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"Unlucky for you, funny ends now." with those final words swordstallion charged forward, his form blurring out from sheer speed. But halfway through the distance, disguised pony leaped to aside. At the same time numerous round objects flew from under his duster, exploding upon contact with arena floor. Smoke bombs! Now a thick haze completely obscured vision of both ponies. Daedalus could hear armor clunking, followed by a complete silence. Most likely Squall jumped through the air and then lowered himself carefully through magic.

 

“Should have seen that one coming,” Daedalus muttered between coughs in the thick smoke.  “No ninja is complete without smoke bombs.”

Still thinking on his hooves, Daedalus dashed aside, leaving an illusory double in his wake that took up fighting stance.  It surely wouldn’t fool Squall for long, but any distraction was sufficient to gain an edge.  Suddenly, the battlefield went deathly quiet.  Daedalus’ ears flicked back and forth, listening for the slightest sound with which to locate his opponent.

Out of the corner of his eye, Daedalus caught the blowing lines of Squall’s duster.  Mentally commanding his double to move, Daedalus closed from behind with the spectral maul, winding up for a swing… a swing that that could have been the winning blow had it connected.  A sharp pain in his front hooves forced him to stumble.  The attack wiffed, sailing neatly over Squall’s head and colliding with the illusory double’s head.  The clone shattered in a spray of purple aether shards, the crystalline dust blending with the smoke already billowing across the arena.

Daedalus cursed through clenched teeth as he allowed the maul to dissipate.  There was only one thing he had to focus on and he would hold onto that until the end.  

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'"Not so nimble now eh?" Squall growled as he headbutted the other unicorn to prevent him from casting a spell. Not slowing down, Swift grappled still staggering unicorn and hurled him over his shoulder, in a telekinesis-aided judo throw. Daedalus was involuntarily sent flying across a Arena with only it's walls stopping an aerial journey.

 

Any retort was lost in the angry snarl of the wounded mage.  Daedalus felt something give as Squall slammed into him with bone-shattering force.  An uncomfortable crackling noise thrummed through his chest.  At this point, he couldn’t tell if it was the last remnants of his armor caving or the last gasp of his body giving way.  The blood rushed to his head from the centrifugal force as he was whirled around with a martial arts throw.  In moments, the blood drained away from his head as he was launched with as much force as his concussive blast spell.  Daedalus gritted his teeth and prepared for impact.

CRUNCH.

The last vestiges of light bled from Daedalus’ hardlight armor as he slowly slid down the arena wall.  A crater ringed with spiderweb cracks marred the stone where he had met his sudden stop.  His head swam.  His vision blurred.  Daedalus was sure something was broken, though he couldn’t tell what at the moment.  But in spite of the injuries, Daedalus still held the singular thought in his mind: the spell must go on.

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"I am not done yet." came a voice from the dark. Noblepony poured his energy in his lone remaining blade before taking a swing twoards where Daedalus should be laying. A loud, ear splitting scrape was heard as a shockwave sliced through both the stone floor and air alike. It wasn't magic per se. Rather a razor sharp vacuum created by draft of the cut. And it was heading towards arcanist right now.

Daedalus didn’t bother moving.  If the spell worked, he had nothing to worry about.  If the spell failed, then he wouldn’t live to tell about it.  He closed his eyes and focused on the form of a stone.

The raucous scraping sound stopped dead.  The shockwave popped and crackled in his ears, but the passing wind did little more than ruffle the strands of hair that had fallen out of the braid in his mane.  Daedalus opened his eyes to the gleam of polished metal millimeters from his eyes.  For a moment, it appeared that Squall had spared him the deathblow and was now poised to give a victory speech.  But as the smoke cleared and the aetherdust evaporated, it became apparent that his stillness was not voluntary.  Where hair and flesh once stood, there was only smooth, black granite.

Squall had been thoroughly petrified.

Gingerly, slowly, Daedalus shuffled himself away from the blade.  With guarded pulses of magic, he pulled the caltrops from his hooves and limped to Squall’s motionless form. The tiniest of grins tugged at Daedalus’ lips.  A grin became a smile.  A smile became a snicker.  A snicker became a laugh.  The laugh hurt every bone in Daedalus’ body and soon he was on the ground in a fit of coughing and guffawing.  A bittersweet mixture of jollity, relief, and pain wrapped around him like a blanket of nails.  Finally, he regained his composure.  Daedalus forced himself onto his good legs and stumbled back toward the stone Squall.

“I know you can hear me, Squall,” he rasped, still fighting the urge to laugh.  “I’ll give you this: you were correct in your assessment of me.  I am not a soldier, swordfighter, assassin, or berserker.  Every blow you dealt was a thorough reminder of that.”

Daedalus paused, wincing at the pain in his ribs.  “But since you’ve been so cordial about this, I’ll let you in on a little secret.  I lied.  This was not a test of my own martial skill, nor yours.  This was a personal test of my ability to maintain a taxing spell whilst in combat.”

Limping closer, Daedalus managed a smirk through bloodied lips.  “The spell in question? A bit of delayed petrification.  The catch? I had to ensure you didn’t realize what was  happening. So I made a show of fighting with swords and spears and hammers, knowing you would likely focus on my lack of martial skill over my use of spellcraft.”

"I knew I would be unlikely to strike you with a single beam spell so I opted to go the slower, more thorough way.  One speck of aether dust would have primed you for a rocky tomb but you spent most of the fight soaking in it.

“Which seems to have worked.”  Daedalus took a moment to catch his breath, clearly still winded after the beating he’d just taken.  “The spell is not permanent.  You’ll be yourself again in a day or so.  When you are, I’d like to discuss less petty matters.  I’ll see you then.”

With his final dismissal, Daedalus strode as best he could from the arena, his mind already churning over techniques, critiques, and avenues of self-improvement.  Squall had revealed many flaws in the mage's abilities; it would be best to remedy them before anyone else could exploit them.  There was still much work to be done.

[Ciraxis]

"Well that cleared a few things" Squall thought after Daedalus started explaining - or rather, monologuing - his intentions. If he wasn't already a statue, Swift was sure that he would turn into one by over-exposition. But regardless of his feelings about this, Squall was already 'stoned'. The battle was over.

Or was it?

As tired and spent Daedalus was limping his way of the Arena he could hear a quite sound. But for him it may as well be as loud as thunder.

CRACK.

Maretonian spun around on his hooves to see Squall who shrug off lats pieces of stone covering from himself. "I will be stiff for hours after this." Squall almost innocently mused before his voice has dropped an octave lower. "And I already said, I am not done yet."

Before other stallion could react a throwing dagger flew from Squall pocket. Smaller and quicker then other before. A small blade found it's mark, digging itself into Daedalus horn. The mage didn't had time to dwell over unpleasantness of this, as in the next moment he was shoulder-tackled into the wall by 500 pounds of muscle and armor. Kastrotian didn't sided down this time, as Swift own magic kept him pinned down to the cold stone.

"Well seeing that gone all into exposition-mode for me back there, I feel it would be fair to return the courtesy....Whoever -You-Are." Squall started. "Starting with probably most pressing, 'How in Tartarus?' To not keep you in suspense..." unicorn reached out under his breastplate to pull out...a pedant? But that little pedant appeared strange - charred, cracks all-over the surface and with smoke coming out of them.

"Recognize this? You know who I am Maretonian. You should therefore know where I have been. In Crystal Empire for example. I wasn't seeing any from where I was, but I knew that caribou had a dark shaman among their ranks back that day. And seeing that this is more or less neutral territory...." swordstallion gave shrug. "Figured I can as well make an insurance in case I run into some spell user like them. Not to fond of mind control. So I got myself universal enchantment breaker. One-time use, activates on first curse or enchantment cast on wearer whatever it's nature is so it's little unreliable. And last but not least - extremely expansive. But again I am who I am, so as you know the last part not really an issue isn't it? Heck I have four more in my baggage." Squall revealed while pressing Daedauls harder into the wall.

"You know, I came here to test myself as well. So here's a final tip from fellow inter. There's never, too much preparation."

And with that word Swift's magic let go of mage.....just to sock him into jaw hard enough to knock him unconscious.

"There was, way too much talking in this duel. Need to drop that habit." noblepony muttered while he disappeared into Arena gate, shaking his still stiff limb.

[Bellosh]

After some overdue discussion, we declare Daedalus the winner of this match. Congrats!