Camithala vs. Cadence
MIF Test Duel
Camithala bows gracefully.
Camithala clasps her arms across her chest, and gradually dissipates into a pale glittering dust. Glancing around the scene, you become increasingly anxious, as you are unable to determine her location. A small light catches your eye deep in the pitch-black woods, and you peer deeper into the darkness in order to get a better look. The golden, almond-shaped glint seems to grow larger and larger, almost as if it were approaching you…with this theory, you back away from the shadowed forest. Suddenly the lights reveal themselves, eyes in the head of a gigantic black wolf. Its snow-white teeth glimmer threateningly, almost lost in the waves of raven brush cloaking its body. With a rumbling growl, the vicious beast is upon you, tearing at your throat with unnatural strength.
Cadence gasps for air. A soft pulsing hits your ears. You have no idea where it is coming from. It seems to be all around you. The pulsing gets louder, and the pitch raises to an almost unbearable level. The wolf screams in pain. Light flashes across the sky, almost blinding you. When you are able to see again, Cadence is standing, the wolf lays unconscious on the ground next to him. You imagine the wolf could not tolerate the noise. Cadence raises his arms and dark clouds form in the sky. A thunderous sound fills your head. Lightning flashes. You feel a trembling beneath your feet. The earth you are standing on breaks and pushes against you. You are being propelled upwards, as the lightning beats down towards you hungrily.
Camithala flashes back to her original state as a bright emerald glow outlines her form. Quickly the translucent sheen trembles across her body, cloaking her in a soft green hue. Lightning dashes relentlessly across her, causing the pale color to ignite in a fluorescent flash. Peering closer you notice jagged streaks of electricity pulsing through Camithala’s veins, throbbing with an almost animal quality as she places her hands against the earth which rumbles upwards. Camithala closes her eyes as violent bolts surge from her hands to the earth, neutralizing the evil force that thrusts her upwards. Camithala slowly stands from the now-level earth, crossing her arms against her chest as a pallid energy travels down her fingers, swallowing Camithala’s being in a ghostly veil. The warmth of the passing breeze is replaced with stunning arctic blasts as they whisk past Camithala, the vibrant blue above dimmed to the lifeless silver of ash. Misty breath coiling in midair before her, Camithala sweeps to the ground and skims her hand along the earth. From her touch, a metallic wave expands like an atomic cloud, clutching the quivering grass in taut icy sheaths. Stepping aside, the crystalline tinkle of shattering life resounds dully; verdant grass flattens into jagged shards. Camithala snaps, allowing silvery streaks to wrap through her emerald tresses, a sickening series of crunches ensuing as every icy blade ascends and hovers a few feet in the air. Eye-to-eye with the glaive-like icicles, you nimbly twist and contort through to a clearing free from the pointed perils, suffering only from minor scratches from brushing the frozen tips. Though by glimpsing back over your shoulder, the piercing ice-grass can be seen as a blur, hurtling in formation past the trees to where you stand…
Cadence turns to face the shards of ice. He extends his hands forward, a strong wind at his fingertips. The wind holds the blades of ice still. Cadence smiles and a wall fire surrounds him. The wind ceases and the ice approaches him once again. Cadence laugh as the fire melts the particles of ice, leaving a puddle in front of him. Cadence grins and pulls two sticks from his purple hair. Laughing he hits the sticks together. You notice the rhythm he’s making matches the beating of your heart. His rhythm gradually slows, and to your horror your heartbeat does too. As your heartbeat continues to weaken, Cadence’s laughter pierces into you.
Camithala drops to her knees and lowers her head, her mortal existence consumed and manipulated by the bewitching sticks. Suddenly Camithala snaps her head upwards, her eyes no more than two swirling, fiery pits in her head. The rhythm continuing to strike into her physical being, Camithala fixes her flaming gaze upon the sticks, two thin beams of flame suddenly erupting and engulfing the dastardly tools. Enclosed within a hovering orb of sanguine and saffron, the mass ascends, guided by Camithala's sight. Suddenly the sphere solidifies, shattering upon the ground as no more than scattered shards. Camithala gasps as her physical self is once more dictated by her own will, then regains her composure. Camithala crosses her ankles and elongates her arms, and with a prompt twist of her ankles sends her entire body into a rapid upwards helix. Balanced in equilibrium with the proximate forces, Camithala maintains in midair as her rotation increases, her body a blur of dark jade from her flowing tresses. The emerald tempest appears to solidify, enclosing Camithala in the throbbing, luminous chamber. As a thick, cold beam radiates to the sky from the apex of Camithala’s cell, you find yourself gazing upwards, as though under command. The limpid heavens jolt uncannily, then merge into a fluid-like spiral, the infinite end sinking into oblivion. An abrupt shock from below sends you staggering sideways, allowing you to watch in a daze the parallel twisting of the earth. Congruent pillars strike out from the vortexes of each marvel, winding shrubs and flowers building upwards as a misty beam descends. As they collide, the entire force is compacted into no more than a rotating icosahedron directly above. Warily you step back, barely avoiding a colliding ray of wind and foliage at the point where you previously stood…
Cadence stares in awe at the scene before him. Once again he calls on the power of destruction. Reaching down he picks up a twig from the forest floor. He waves it in through the air, grinning as a small flame emerges on the end of the wood. Cadence throws the twig high into the air. Just seconds before it comes falling back to the earth, the twig explodes, sending sparks throughout the foliage. The wind calms to a gentle breeze, encouraging the fire to grow and expand. Within moments the foliage has been burnt to ash. Cadence picks up a stone and throws it into the horizon. The earth groans and trembles. An earthquake? Cadence looks up at you. From your place above the earth you can see that this is no ordinary earthquake. The ground pulsates, contracting and expanding. However, not a single crack appears in the dirt. Suddenly you cannot breath. The air around you seems to have thinned. Just as suddenly, the air is returned to your lungs. Then it is compressed, pressing on you from all sides. You realize what is happening, just as the earth is compressing and expanding, so is the air. You are not sure how long your body can tolerate this abuse.
Camithala manages to hold her hand above her head weakly. Thin coils of jet-black energy swirl down her arms, enclosing her body within a gyrating chamber. The motion of the earth and sky continues to tremble chaotically as the coils continue to twist, though soon warp and curl parallel to the motion of the energy. Suddenly the phenomenon dispels, leaving Camithala standing with eyes closed, the surrounding environment as it was before the mad series of events inflicted upon it. Camithala holds her palm to her lips and blows gently, a thin rosy mist diffusing into the air about you. A gentle lightness seems to scatter across the glade, thin beams of light dappling the ground from the canopy. "A good duel," smiles Camithala as she bows elegantly.
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