Aliit Ori'shya Tal'din

[Ralin Saxon]

Concordia - Nothern Continent​

Winter was almost upon them. His village had settled down to wait for the snows to pass before moving again. This meant they would stay in the place for far longer than usual. This time of year also brought about a rather odd festival. It was a time where Clan Saxon and Clan Wren put aside the rivalry for several days of feasting. Of course, there was also a lot of fighting, both sanctioned and unsanctioned but it was usually done in good nature.

In his childhood, he had never understood the purpose of such a feast but now saw its significance in Mandalorian Culture. The two clans may be rivals, but they were both still Mandalorian, and Family is more than blood sometimes. The normally small village had grown to accommodate the influx of the Saxon and Wren families.

The Feast would officially start at noon, beginning with fights in the pits that had been dug the night before. The two clans would send the toughest against one another. It was often a highlight of the feast.

Ralin stepped out into the cold late fall air. The first snow of the season would come any day. People were already beginning to gather at the pit so he began to make his way as well. As one of the warriors of his clan, he would be called upon to fight today, a challenge he greatly looked forward to.

As he made his way through the village, the smell of the food was intoxicating and only added to his excitement.

 

[Solone Wren]

So it wasn't as bad as she thought it was, but it wasn't home and as soon she had set foot back on Krownest she was obligated to go to this festival. They had set up camp just outside the Saxon village, the air was crisp and welcoming, though Solone preferred for it to be a bit more chilly, and perhaps with a significant amount of snow on the ground. However, she would survive and was glad at least it wasn't on a jungle world where she felt like her entire body was going to melt. The atmosphere made it tolerable, laughing and tales of the old echoed through the village as Solone passed through with a couple of her childhood friends.

It had felt ages since she had last saw them as they exchanged stories of their latest adventures outside the Mandalorian sector, some were intense while others were more humorous now but not at the time of it happening. Regardless, there was feeling to it all that warmed Solone, reminding her of the reasons she valued her clan and her family. She stood with several others around the pit and her stomach protested the extended wait of the roasted meats being prepared nearby. Solone crossed her arms as one of the clan leaders each from Wren and Saxon entered the pit, raising their hand in unison in order to quiet the crowd that had gathered.

"Olarom!" the Saxon leader cried out and the people have begun to quiet, including Solone, as she finished a chuckle from one of the swapped stories, "/So many faces, old and new, but it is a welcoming sight as we celebrate what it means to be united as one, family, strength, honor, values we all share here./" he spoke in Mando'a, which raised the eyebrows of a few, including Solone who was wary of Imperial loyalists in the clans, though they seemed like the ones who wouldn't give the time to participate. The Wren leader then spoke, "/Every year we has for one from each of our clans to send their own to this pit in order to test their strength and resolve as to who is the better warrior, and bragging rights for the next year./" smiled the clan leader, gaining laughs from the crowd.

"/So who will it be?/" The Saxon Leader asked and Solone felt a push, she glanced over her shoulder to her friends who were egging her to go into the pit. However, it seemed to catch on with others of her clan too as they begun to chant her name, now making sure she couldn't turn down the challenge. Solone sighed, but accepted with a faux reluctance, the lesser part of her wanting the bragging rights, but she could hear her parents warn her of pride as she climbed down into the pit.

The Wren Leader patted her shoulder and gave her a reassuring smile; the woman smiled and raised her fist in the air, "/I am Solone of Clan Wren, daughter of Decima and Otho Wren./" she said and cheers erupted from clan Wren as she waited for her opponent.

@Raydo

 

[Ralin Saxon]

As he approached, he spotted a young cousin of his trying to jump to see over the crowds. With a hearty chuckle, he picked the boy up and placed him on his shoulders before walking the rest of the way. He remembered the excitement of this day when he was a child. They approached and waited for the clan leaders to speak. As the call for a warrior from clan Wren went out, a woman by the name of Solone was chosen. She was obviously popular with her people as they chanted her name before she jumped down into the pit.

The head of clan Saxon looked to Ralin and they locked eyes for a moment. Quen Saxon was a mean woman, but she seemed joyous enough today. She was not well loved by her people but she had earned her place at the head of the clan. Ralin nodded at the silent command before lifting the boy off of his shoulders and lowering him to the ground. An older man gave him a hearty slap on the back as he removed his cloak, leaving only his simple trousers and a sleeveless shirt. The cold air on his arms was invigorating and he could already feel the thrill of the fight upon him. He jumped down into pit.

"I am Ralin of Clan Saxon, and I accept your challenge." he said, as was the customary response as his clan cheered for him as well. He took one of the wooden staves that had been placed in the pit, spinning it several times to get a feel for its weight before bowing to his opponent.

He looked up to Quen who had taken her seat above the pit. She waited for several seconds before clapping her hands and yelling "Akaanir!"

As soon as the words left her mouth, Ralin bolted forward closing the distance between him and his opponent but stopped short. He swung his staff in a low sweeping attack. It was meant to test the defenses of the woman, careful not to over commit and left him plenty of room to defend himself if she surprised him.

 

[Solone Wren]

The Saxon's picked their warrior as Solone picked up her staff, turning slowly to look at the crowd that gathered, she was certain it didn't look as large from the top, but she wouldn't let it bother her. She unsheathed her staff from the dirt getting a feel for her weapon as Ralin accepted her challenge; Solone kept her eyes on the man, positioning herself battle ready, feeling the looseness of the soil beneath her feet; running and sharp turns were going to be difficult.

The Saxon leader yelled a single command and the fight begun; Ralin wasted no time, dashing toward her with his staff at hand, but Solone wasted no time either, taking off from her position looking to get as close as she could to the Saxon as he swung his staff, a right-handed sweep that was met with the girl's staff as she stabbed it into the ground. His staff would crack against her own as she stepped inside his arm, delivering a punch to his midsection with a snap of her right fist. Hoping to have taken the air from him she would continue to push forward, turning into him to deliver another blow now with her left elbow into his solar plexus.

The move was risky, she could hear the cries from the crowd as the two collided in the fight, but quickly turned into cheers as they supported their champion. However, the risk was worth its prize as she knew not to let up if she thought she held the advantage.

@Raydo

 

[Ralin Saxon]

She blocked the swing, which Ralin had expected, but she quickly countered with a punch to his stomach. He took the blow, taking a step back to absorb some of the power out of the strike as he did, he dropped the staff to better defend himself in close quarters. A lesser warrior would have had the air stolen from his lungs, but he, as most Mandalorians, had been trained from birth to hit and be hit. A burst of cheers erupted for the woman as she landed the first blow.

He sidestepped to the outside of next blow and stepped in even closer, He grabbed her arm with both of his and slid a leg up against hers as he used her own momentum to throw her over his leg. It would not cause any real damage, but would put her on her back in the mud. If sucessful, a string of cheers would sound for Ralin.

He would not press the attack further, backing up he would grab another other of the staves from the pit.

 

[Solone Wren]

Solone felt a jolt of adrenaline as she heard her clan cheer for her as she landed her blow into Ralin. He took a few steps back and she followed, however as she made her next move to keep pressing forward, Ralin managed to gain a grip on her arm and stepped into her swing. The world began to turn, her mind telling her to prepare herself for when she meets the ground upon landing from his flip. She internally grimaced at the amount of cleaning she would need to do again after this to get the mud out of her armor. However, as the crowd cheered for the Saxon challenger, Solone jumped up to her feet, seeing that Ralin had grabbed another staff from the pit.

She scrapped off some of the mud from her forearm and threw it on the ground while she kept her eyes on Ralin. Also grabbing another staff, Solone rotated her wrist and elbow, the staff cut into the air with a few whishes as she studied her opponent. The crowd grew quiet until one yelled out something unintelligible and slightly intoxicated, but enough to entice the crowd to join in also, calling for the two challengers to step up their game.

Solone broke the staff over her knee, giving herself two weapons and closed the distance, her steps meaningful, ready to anchor herself in case Ralin decided to charge after her midway, but if he didn't, the Wren would continue. Her left arm raised, ready to defend, however it was her right that she used to take a swing across his midsection.

@Raydo