10-14-2015, 09:45 AM
The world flashed white as Kopaka's unmasked face was driven into the unforgiving dirt floor of the arena. Humiliating. More importantly, the Toa had felt a pang of sharp pain in the semi-organic musculature that lined his otherwise mechanical neck. The force of the impact was startlingly fierce for an organic of this female's size and structure. He would have to start making a more concerted effort to end this fight.
That wasn't to say he hadn't been trying before now; Kopaka had merely been resorting to his usual, methodical approach to combat. As this melee had drawn on, however, it was evident that Kopaka and the Ururu girl were an odd match for each other. She could barely hurt him, and he could hardly keep up with her acrobatic antics...though, perhaps her latest gambit had proven this dynamic was not completely balanced. Still, it struck the Toa as odd that she would be willing to sustain such a grievous, possibly fatal, chest wound to turn the battle in her favor.
A sudden slice of pain biting into his right side brought Kopaka back to the immediacy of his predicament. Shaking his head free of the baleful stupor echoing from the recent cranial impact, the biomech lunged back on to his feet, only to lose his coordination and flop heavily back into the dirt. Now genuine panic began to set in. The female's clawed pile driver had more than strained his neck muscles, it had injured his spinal column. Another flash of clawed pain ricocheted off of the dense armor plating on his back. Kopaka could just imagine the pathetic scene; him lying face down in the dirt and her making gleeful hit-and-run attacks, unchallenged. The shame was too much to bear. He needed to calm his mind and remember his past lessons.
Play to your strengths.
Closing his gleaming eyes, Kopaka extended his awareness outwards, trying to hear the female's ephemeral movements over the constant din of the other fighters and raucous crowd. It was barely distinguishable, but Kopaka did catch the muted pattering of feet approaching from his right. With a haggard growl, the Toa lifted the Ice Sword up weakly and blindly fired a brilliant stream of elemental power in that direction. The haphazard shot was far from perfect, but the suddenness of the retaliation managed to catch Ururu off guard. Though she ducked to the left, her left shoulder and a majority of her upper torso suddenly became encased in a thick burl of rock-solid rime.
Kopaka didn't bother to let his bitter gaze rest on the human's struggles. Instead, he frantically propped himself up on one arm and searched the area for his Kanohi mask. There! Just a few scant feet behind him. The solid metal face plate had defaulted to its basic form, the Akaku. Half stumbling, half sprinting, Kopaka surged over to the artifact of power and swiftly fastened it back over his iron features. The Kanohi reactivated immediately, allowing Kopaka to gaze through solid materials once more. The biomech prepared to face his foe, but as his head turned, something caught his eye.
During the course of the battle, the pair of fighters had drifted close enough to Ururu's side of the field that the Toa could now see through a majority of the stone walls that littered the battle zone. Behind one such wall, the one that Ururu had paused behind at the beginning of their fight, there lay a small body, identical to the youthful frame that had been combating Kopaka up until this point.
Kopaka turned to face Ururu, or Ururu's clone, rather, where she stood behind another such wall, peeking at Kopaka from behind cover. After having rid herself of the icy affliction that had bound much of her body, she had momentarily taken cover to observe the biomech's movements. The Toa looked back to the true body's hiding place, then back to the clone. Their eyes locked, and in that instance, each knew exactly what the other was thinking. With all the grace of a Kane-Ra Bull, Kopaka pulled himself to his feet and staggered towards the female's true body as fast as he could. Kopaka had to prepare for one of Ururu's unpredictable maneuvers, so he called upon the Kanohi Matatu, hoping that he could ward off any potential attack with a telekinetic blast of force. Maybe it would be enough to catch the female off guard long enough to deliver a killing blow...
That wasn't to say he hadn't been trying before now; Kopaka had merely been resorting to his usual, methodical approach to combat. As this melee had drawn on, however, it was evident that Kopaka and the Ururu girl were an odd match for each other. She could barely hurt him, and he could hardly keep up with her acrobatic antics...though, perhaps her latest gambit had proven this dynamic was not completely balanced. Still, it struck the Toa as odd that she would be willing to sustain such a grievous, possibly fatal, chest wound to turn the battle in her favor.
A sudden slice of pain biting into his right side brought Kopaka back to the immediacy of his predicament. Shaking his head free of the baleful stupor echoing from the recent cranial impact, the biomech lunged back on to his feet, only to lose his coordination and flop heavily back into the dirt. Now genuine panic began to set in. The female's clawed pile driver had more than strained his neck muscles, it had injured his spinal column. Another flash of clawed pain ricocheted off of the dense armor plating on his back. Kopaka could just imagine the pathetic scene; him lying face down in the dirt and her making gleeful hit-and-run attacks, unchallenged. The shame was too much to bear. He needed to calm his mind and remember his past lessons.
Play to your strengths.
Closing his gleaming eyes, Kopaka extended his awareness outwards, trying to hear the female's ephemeral movements over the constant din of the other fighters and raucous crowd. It was barely distinguishable, but Kopaka did catch the muted pattering of feet approaching from his right. With a haggard growl, the Toa lifted the Ice Sword up weakly and blindly fired a brilliant stream of elemental power in that direction. The haphazard shot was far from perfect, but the suddenness of the retaliation managed to catch Ururu off guard. Though she ducked to the left, her left shoulder and a majority of her upper torso suddenly became encased in a thick burl of rock-solid rime.
Kopaka didn't bother to let his bitter gaze rest on the human's struggles. Instead, he frantically propped himself up on one arm and searched the area for his Kanohi mask. There! Just a few scant feet behind him. The solid metal face plate had defaulted to its basic form, the Akaku. Half stumbling, half sprinting, Kopaka surged over to the artifact of power and swiftly fastened it back over his iron features. The Kanohi reactivated immediately, allowing Kopaka to gaze through solid materials once more. The biomech prepared to face his foe, but as his head turned, something caught his eye.
During the course of the battle, the pair of fighters had drifted close enough to Ururu's side of the field that the Toa could now see through a majority of the stone walls that littered the battle zone. Behind one such wall, the one that Ururu had paused behind at the beginning of their fight, there lay a small body, identical to the youthful frame that had been combating Kopaka up until this point.
Kopaka turned to face Ururu, or Ururu's clone, rather, where she stood behind another such wall, peeking at Kopaka from behind cover. After having rid herself of the icy affliction that had bound much of her body, she had momentarily taken cover to observe the biomech's movements. The Toa looked back to the true body's hiding place, then back to the clone. Their eyes locked, and in that instance, each knew exactly what the other was thinking. With all the grace of a Kane-Ra Bull, Kopaka pulled himself to his feet and staggered towards the female's true body as fast as he could. Kopaka had to prepare for one of Ururu's unpredictable maneuvers, so he called upon the Kanohi Matatu, hoping that he could ward off any potential attack with a telekinetic blast of force. Maybe it would be enough to catch the female off guard long enough to deliver a killing blow...
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