I saw rise in the heat settle soft and as pure as snow

[reunionize]

[This, honestly, took a lot of work. More work than some of the battleplans, but admittedly the machinations of the Victorian nobles are predictable. The only thing Talulah knows about the northern territories is what she's gleaned from her father's journals.

Edward Artorius apparently had a decent enough relationship with the ruler when he'd been alive, and since the wendigo race of Sarkaz live for a very, very long time, perhaps any goodwill towards her parent might be extended to her.

She has also gleaned the northerners are not unreasonable; they've crossed paths during various skirmishes at the border, and they ignore all rebel forces once their own task is complete. Talulah has made it very clear no one from her side is to engage with any other party that isn't either obviously Victorian, or strikes first, and it seems the courtesy is returned.

That said, isolationist policy is hard to overcome, and what she's asking isn't a mere favor. To be embroiled in civil war in another country is an idea most people would scoff at, but...the north has undoubtedly seen the writing on the wall for what will transpire after the dust settles. Victoria's appetite is ever unsatiable.

The Gaulish castle she walks through is a testament to that. It's nothing but ruins now, good for little else besides neutral territory. She's brought two members of the rebels with her, two with a calm rationality suited to negotiations. She'd be fine going in alone, but, well...if Talulah saw another group's leader sitting all alone during a meeting that was meant to be a peaceful talk, she'd think there was an ambush waiting.

Still, no matter how rational one is, curiosity tends to win out, and she can hear her escort party gossiping even behind their masks. They're wondering if the northern princess is as beautiful and strong as the rumors say. If she's half as strong as that Cautus she'd seen once during a border skirmish, then her alliance would be more than a boon.

By her estimation, the meeting time is near, so she supposes she'll find out soon enough.]

Comments

[reunionize]

[The eerie sound of the ice makes Talulah's hair stand on end. Her instincts say to stop Frostnova before she can do anything further, but charging right at her would spell an instant defeat as well.

Her arts swirl around her, keeping most of the ice away. If the air hadn't been so cold, it would be shimmering with heat instead.]

Music? ...I didn't get much exposure to a variety.

[Thanks to Kashchey, of course, and his idea of what an heir needs to know. Which should give Frostnova enough of a hint as to what kind of music Talulah has been taught about and heard most often.]

[hypothermy]

Too bad. You'll have to forgive me if our tastes are too different.

[ the cold wind whips around the both of them Frostnova draws herself up to her full (if not particularly imposing height). the ice around her rattles again as she draws in a deep breath, opening her mouth again a moment later as if to speak again. ]

Es führt über den Main eine Brücke von Stein—

[ there won't be much time to puzzle over why the lilting, simple melody that fills the air is in Leithanien. any heir of Kaschey's would recognize an arts incantation in a heartbeat, and know they need to act before the next one, unless they'd rather risk the sudden explosion of black ice hailing down upon them from all directions. ]

Wer darüber will geh'n, muss im Tanze sich dreh'n

[reunionize]

[Any music during a fight is a reason to be wary--Leithaniens aren't the only ones who use it as an arts conduit, after all.

Despite how beautiful the song is, Talulah can't afford to wait around and listen to it. If the encantation completes, she doesn't have much of a chance to dodge or block the result.

The only choice she has is to wrap herself and her weapon in fire and heat again, as some kind of protection against all the cold and ice, and rush forward before any more of those notes complete the spell.]

[hypothermy]

[ Talulah will quickly realize that the frigid cold eating away at her flames is different from what she's experienced before. the incantation is still building to its crescendo, but even the prelude hits with terrifying force. low waves of ice roll out from where Yelena stands, an ocean all in white, threatening to rise up Talulah's legs and trap her in place. ]

Fa la la la, fa la la la la—

[ it's clear now what the runes along the edge of the arena are for. an iridescent dome of arts rises higher and higher as the temperature drops, frost forming along the barrier like it would on glass. it hurts to breathe now, the air could enough to rend any normal humans lungs, all while shards of ice continue fall from above. ]

[reunionize]

[If Talulah's arts had been true fire, they'd probably get swallowed up by the sheer cold. As it is, she can just keep at the ice attempting to halt her movement at bay and keep the air around her warm enough to render the ice shards harmless.

It won't last long. Not least of all because Talulah can't possibly predict what the incantation is leading to.

The flames around her sword grow, white-hot enough that looking at them would leave an imprint in anyone's vision. She steps forward, swings, and releases the arts in a pillar that rages forward. She has no idea if it's enough to reach Frostnova, but that's less important than the fact it cuts her a path through the ice she can follow, easily and swiftly.]

[hypothermy]

[ the pillar of fire as Talulah reprisal was expected, and Yelena does her best to counter it. ]

Kommt ein Fuhrmann daher, at geladen— gar schwer

[ there's a slight hitch in the melody as Frostnova has to throw up her defense. it's another pillar, though of a size Talulah's never seen before. it rises up like a volcanic geyser shooting out of the ground, the width and height of one of the modest houses Talulah's seen in the capital. her ribbon of fire connects with it just in time to block her clear path to Frostnova, the sheer size of the ice allowing it to take the brunt of Talulah's attack. ]

Seiner Rösser sind drei, und sie tanzen vorbei

[ the breathe Yelena takes between verses is a beat too long as ice melts, then shatters, raining shards down on the field again like a volley of arrows. it gives Frostnova enough time to finish off another round of the song, but Talulah gains the clear path to her opponent she'd been aiming for. ]

Fa la la la la, fa la la la.

[reunionize]

[She could be running into a trap, if she's honest. But if she doesn't go towards Frostnova, it's certain failure. She'll lose in a war of attrition.

But at least she's sure now, from how the ice weakened when Frostnova paused to take a breath, that stopping the song would work.

She hadn't slowed down much when she saw the ice pillar, thinking that if the initial blast hadn't done the trick, she could physically cut a path with her sword. Her pace quickens and she adjusts to grip her sword firmly in both hands, so she can swing as quickly and decisively as possible the moment she's in range.]

[hypothermy]

[ the storm Yelena's whipped up inside the boundaries of the training field is raging now, a bitterly cold wind mixed with snow battering against Talulah as she surges forward. ]

Und ein Bursch ohne Schuh, und in Lumpen dazu

[ Frostnova knows repositioning herself isn't option, as allowing the incantation to lapse for that long will dispel it entirely, squandering her energy. she can't afford to trade blows again, but she doesn't have another option. ]

Als die Brücke er sah, ei, wie tanzte er da

[ the terrain surrounding her struggles to reform the ice where Talulah cleared a path, leaving her a clear route to close in. Yelena allows it, continuing the song until Talulah is nearly within striking distance, and only then throwing up her last defense. another cocoon of ice takes form, curling around her before it blooms out, additional walls of ice rising around her like the unfolding petals of a flower. the ice forms in such a way that rather than break or tear whatever lies in its path, it grows around it, trapping anything it catches. ]

[reunionize]

[The problem with the newly formed cocoon of ice isn't so much that it's trying to trap her, but rather that she no longer has any room for a proper swing of her sword. The longer she stays trapped, though, the worse the outcome. She has to break through quickly, but there are few options for how.

It's hard to hear the song through the wall of ice and over the swirling wind whipping around, but Talulah focuses as much as she can on pinpointing its source exactly.

Narrowed to a single area, her arts can eat away the ice from inside of it, between the layers that make up the trap. The moment it grows thin enough, she takes a breath of the cold, stinging air, and throws her full weight against the spot she'd weakened.]

[hypothermy]

[ Yelena can feel it as Talulah retaliates, her fire targeted down to a single that gradually wanes and fractures. she can get out another refrain and do what she can to bolster the ice, but it's not enough. ]

Fa la la—

[ the ice cracks, then shatters, and draco comes bursting through her defense. the painful chill of the air around her is swallowed up by heat, and Frostnova only barely raises her cane up in time to catch Talulah's blade. with the momentum she has, that's all Yelena can really manage, though. her footing fails her and she ends up thrown back against the opposite side of the cocoon, trapped between the quickly melting wall of ice and Talulah. ]

[reunionize]

[Her snap decision proved correct, but Talulah didn't calculate much further than breaking the cocoon and stopping the song. The force of her momentum helps push Frostnova back, but it's not conducive to helping Talulah recover after she makes contact with the other's weapon.

Frostnova can likely tell that there's a beat where Talulah has to regain her balance so she can disengage her sword and take another swing. It's awkward, but even from this brief sparring match, she knows the worst thing she could do is give Frostnova any opening to retaliate with her arts.]

[hypothermy]

[ breaking her concentration on the incantation isn't technically the worst thing that could happen to Frostnova in a fight, but it ranks higher than she'd like. with Talulah practically on top of her, her cold rapidly begins to lose its edge, the air around them gradually being to warm to a less brutal temperature.

her arts usage is beginning to wear on her, but Yelena isn't going to give Talulah the satisfaction of going down easily. when Talulah takes a moment too long to regain her footing, she pushes back, her other hand coming up with her knife to catch Talulah's blade between both her weapons. she puts as much weight as she can into shoving Talulah away, hopefully back against another of the ice walls. ]

[reunionize]

[Talulah's energy for her arts is starting to fade as well. She's not used to this constant need to sustain it against the cold--she's much better at and much more accustomed to concentrated bursts of power.

Still, she's not going to let the protective layer of heat around her waver yet, even when Frostnova does push her back against one of the other ice walls. At least now she has a solid foundation to reorient herself against.

She keeps her sword in a guard position until she's on firm footing, before flicking the blade forward in a short, firm swing as she pushes herself off the of wall.]

[hypothermy]

[ Talulah has the advantage when it comes to pure physical combat, and Frostnova isn't ignorant to the fact that her counter move will quickly be turned against her. she can't muster another grand arts attack again so soon, and it would be dangerous to try something now that they're locked in with each other, but she's not entirely out of options yet.

the ice in the area where Yelena was standing is thick enough on the ground that Talulah's presence hasn't yet melted through all of it. when she finds her footing and swings, a corner of Frostnova's mouth twitches, and the ice beneath Talulah's feet suddenly shifts to the side. Yelena takes the opening to throw her own weight forward, attempting to knock Talulah to the ground the moment her stance breaks. ]

[reunionize]

[She hadn't been thinking about the floor all that much, since she expected her arts to take care of it. But either she'd used up too much fuel already, or the ice underneath them in this part of the arena is thicker than the rest, because there's enough of it left to send her off-balance when Frostnova makes it shift.

She feels the other knock into her and curses, dropping one hand from the hilt of her sword to grab whatever part of Frostnova's arm is closest to her and drag her down too. Talulah isn't going to give her the chance to stand there and cast a spell.]

[hypothermy]

[ trying to disentangle herself is easier said than done, and Frostnova isn't quite quick to pull back when Talulah grabs for her on the way down. she's not sure if this should count as a successful strike for either of them, but she's not thinking much on the rules of the match anymore, the adrenaline high coursing through her narrowing all thought down to a singular drive to subdue her opponent.

the arm Talulah's grabbed is the one holding her cane, making it even more difficult to keep the others sword at bay. her only course of action now is shift them the best she can as they fall to ensure she lands on top of Talulah, the hand she has holding the practice knife scraping up the blade of the sword before breaking away, Yelena aiming to hold it against Talulah's throat. ]

[reunionize]

[The actual rules of the match aren't at the forefront of Talulah's mind either, which is likely the reason she reacted by pulling Frostnova down with her in the first place.

She manages to twist her wrist enough to knock the hilt of her sword against the knife in the other's hand, just enough to keep the point from actually touching her neck. Of course, now they're...kind of at a stalemate. If she lets go of Frostnova's other arm, then that frees up the cane. She doesn't have enough leverage to push Frostnova off of her completely, either.

There are arts, but the ones Talulah can effectively use at this distance aren't ones she'd ever consider using in a sparring match.]

[hypothermy]

[ it doesn't take long for Frostnova to come to the same conclusion, her mind refocusing on the facts of their current position once she realizes how they're almost locked into place. Talulah's angled her blade to block her own, and has a grip on her other arm that doesn't show any signs of faltering when Yelena leans forward to test it.

she huffs out a breath, the air between them quickly turning white and foggy as the cold of Frostnova's arts meets Talulah's heat. ]

You're not bad.

[reunionize]

[The bit of reluctant praise doesn't make Talulah falter, but a bit of her expression softens out of the focused intensity used in a fight.]

And you actually live up to your reputation.

[That doesn't quite solve their stalemate, though. Talulah doesn't want to end things in a tie, but they also can't stay here forever. Or until the general decides to interfere.]

...how do you want to finish this?

[hypothermy]

You want to keep going?

[ Yelena does too, of course, but hearing Talulah echo her sentiment even as they're bearing down on each other like this is ... amusing, she supposes. perhaps that's not the exact emotion behind the smile she flashes for a moment so brief Talulah might think she imagined it.

while she's dangerously interested in seeing what Talulah looks like pushed to her absolute limits, her own arts use is beginning to wear on her, and another extended fight would leave her exhausted for the foreseeable future. ]

First one to hit the ground? Anything other than your soles or weapons on the dirt counts as out.

[reunionize]

You don't strike me as someone fine with leaving it as a tie, either.

[She does think she imagines the smile, but she recognizes Frostnova relaxing enough that means this particular round is over. Her own energy for arts is waning, so a duel with simpler rules seems best.

Before she gives her answer, she loosens the grip she has on Frostnova's arm and moves the hilt of her sword away.]

Sure. That's fine by me.

[hypothermy]

Good.

[ Yelena pulls her weapon away, sitting up and then moving to stand. she can't banish the multitude of ice walls still encircling them like the overlapping petals of a flower, and while she supposes she could ask Talulah to melt them down, it seems simpler to move them.

she makes a quick gesture with her hand, the ice creaking with a shudder before it moves, falling back from where they two duelists landed like a receding tide. taking care to make sure the ground is clear as well, Frostnova creates them a generally sized space to start the final round. ]

Ready when you are.

[reunionize]

[Talulah stands up after Frostnova moves and absently dusts herself off. She watches the ice walls crack and fall around them. After the friendly match they just had, there's no room for doubting Frostnova's skills when it comes to arts at all, but it's still impressive to see all that ice removed with seemingly such little effort.

She moves to stand in the space mostly cleared of ice and debris, and readjusts the grip on her sword.]

Ready.

[hypothermy]

[ shuffling it around to clear the space is relatively easy compared to spinning it from the air to create blockades and projectiles. Frostnova's about hit her limit with the latter, and there's no tell-tale signs of another drop in temperature or fogging of the air as adjusts her stance.

it's been a while since she played at close combat— it doesn't suite her fighting style out on the southern front, but for the current win conditions of their bout, she can't avoid it. she stands stock-still for a few long moments, eyes locked on Talulah, silently deliberating.

even without ice beneath her feet to fly her from one spot to another, Yelena's quick on her feet. she's bearing down on Talulah in an instant once she dashes forward, her cane raised to crack down on the space between her neck and shoulder on her dominant arm, trying to break her hold on her sword. ]

[reunionize]

[Talulah's capacity for finesse when it comes to arts has all but been exhausted, so at least she doesn't have to maintain a larger aura of heat to stave off Frostnova's ice anymore.

Close combat is something she's more used to, but she's facing an opponent whose fighting style is still relatively unknown, so she doesn't relax, even through the long moment when Frostnova doesn't move.

She expects the speed, even without the ice, but even though she knew how fast the other could move, Talulah's sword arm is barely fast enough to bring up her weapon to block. It's awkward, but Talulah is strong enough to try and pivot her weight to throw Frostnova off-balance.]