It had been a while since Tourmaline traveled the wider caves. Ever since Canis, she'd been nursing her burn wounds and taking it easy at her den. Thankfully, Polaris was safe enough, and a few cycles passed in relative silence. But now, finally healed (though definitely a bit scraggly), she gotten antsy for an adventure.

Her magic had also gotten rusty too, unfortunately. Though it was better to wait and let the wounds heal rather than make them worse.

Coming to the riverbank, she'd bend down to drink. Once satisfied, she'd step further in, wetting her paws. The cool water felt heavenly. I needed this.

@V-Onyx-Three

It had been a long time since he had thought about... anything. But that had been his goal. After the resolution of his rivalry with V-Ruby-One, or at least, a temporary keeping of the peace, it had only been natural for his mind to wander to other things, other preoccupations. Other... mistakes. Painful thoughts resurfaced in the wake that contained particular references to a certain blue gembound that he did not want to think about. But after that he had thrown himself into his work. And work he did until his thoughts filtered away and he entered hibernation.

Then he reawakened. And Pegasus called. Cave of warmth and food, fitting for a place that reminded him so of his mother. Unlike previous hunting expeditions he brought nothing with him. No bow, no quiver, no dagger. He wanted to test his prowess without it. A good warrior was a well-rounded one, that he had learned very well.

Coming to the river, he noticed a certain gembound enjoying the waters. V-Onyx-Three had not seen a gembound who looked so... content. To enjoy something so thoroughly was something he had only felt at the end of a successful hunt, or spar. "Hello." he called out, the sound of his voice almost unfamiliar. Even before hibernation there had been a period of time when he had not used it much. "You are enjoying the river." It was a statement trying to reach a question but did not come out as such. V-Onyx-Three took a step into the water himself. Alek. It reminded him of that time when... no no no he could not think back to that now.

@Tourmaline

Her ear would flick at the sound of footsteps in the sand, but she would only turn when he spoke. Reckless? Maybe. But she's in a good mood. Worries are for later.

"Hello," she smiles. Tourmaline takes the opportunity to look Onyx over, taking them in. Not anyone she'd recognize, nor one who would remind her of any others, but there's nothing wrong with that. "I am. it's been a while since I've been able to relax like this."

She paws at the water, making little splashes. And while she waits for the hybrid to respond, her own mind wanders herself. "...But maybe I should've gotten to de-rusting my magic before playing around," she thinks aloud.

@V-Onyx-Three

"Magic... can rust?" The only things they knew that could rust were things that could be forged, which he was quite familiar with. V-Onyx-Three was not aware of magic rusting, or the verb being used to describe magic at all. But then again, they were also very aware of their limitations when it came to the magic. Their understanding of it was vague at best. Though, they supposed, magic did many of the same things that weapons and armor did. It could attack and it could defend. Perhaps it made sense that it had similar properties.

Watching the gembound paw at the water made them want to try and do the same. V-Onyx-Three leaned down and scooped it up with his fingers. It was relaxing, they supposed. At the very least it was cool to the touch. They repeated the motion, this time submerging their forearms in the water. "I have a forge in Draco. If help is needed to 'derust' your magic." he offered. She seemed nice enough and he would take any opportunity he could get to get more practice.

@Tourmaline

She glances back up at Onyx's question. "Yes, in a way," she'd answer simply. How long has it been - she hadn't used her magic since Canis. That had been cycles...

A tilt of Tourmaline's head shows her listen to him continuing. "Oh, not like that," she laugh. But she'd quickly explain. "Magic is a skill. Any skill, without practice, you start to loose your edge. Like weapons and tools not being maintained. That's how it gets 'rusty,' if that makes sense?"

Draco though... where has she heard that before? She feels like she should know, but Tourmaline draws a blank. Onyx's other part of that offer, though, is tempting. "Well, to de-rust my magic, I need to get back in practice. So, if you'd like to help, I suppose I could show some to you. Or, if you're inclined to put forth your own skills, we could do something a bit more competitive," she'd suggest, leaning a little closer.

@V-Onyx-Three

They nodded. "I understand. Thank you." It was a good explanation, put into terms that they understood. The more they learned about magic, the more they saw that despite its uncontrollable nature, there were some aspects of it that a user could reign in and direct. He was curious to see what kind of magic this gembound had and what she could do. His most prominent memories surrounding magic usage were from his many interactions with the self-named 'Helion' and those had been rather destructive to say the least.

Now, someone directly asking him if he wanted to do something more competitive was unexpected. His ears perked up at those words. Someone who was keen to compete! Now this would be a great opportunity to practice. "I would like to help 'derust' your magic. For a 'competitive' method I propose... a spar?" V-Onyx-Three was thinking about how much he liked this gembound already. Anyone who enjoyed Pegasus was already someone with good taste. Oh wait. "May I ask your name before we begin?"

@Tourmaline

She'd smile back, "Of course." Her image of herself was of a caring mentor, spending her time helping people when she could. If anything, the praise warmed Tourmaline's heart a little.

She'd pick up on the perked ears, the way Onyx shifted eagerly. Seems she'd struck a chord with them. "I like the sound of that!" Who knows when she'd need to fight for real. Her combat skills needed to be sharpened, too.

The pallas cat starts to strut out of the water, stopping on the riverbank. Oh right, names. She'd entirely forgotten. So she offers, "I'm Tourmaline. And you are?"

Then she'd ready her stance, a confident grin spreading across her face. "When you're ready, say the world, and we begin. "

@V-Onyx-Three

He followed her lead, moving away from the river and positioning himself on solid ground. Their mind was already running, trying to predict what she might do. Wouldn't it be interesting if she had some sort of water magic? Then the river may play a role in this spar. Unless they could use it to their advantage as well... This was already turning out to be rather interesting. There was much to learn from this.

"V-Onyx-Three. Nice to meet you Tourmaline." Though she was not a Forge member, he thought that the name was somewhat similar given that it was a kind of gemstone.

He fell into his own battle-ready stance, standing upright with one leg in front of the other. "Ready. You first." This was partially because he needed to get a read on what kind of magic she had exactly, and also her approach to combat.

@Tourmaline

She too, was running calculations. What would V-Onyx do? She knows they prefer physicality, but what would he use? Claws? Teeth? Those bladed spikes? She will definitely have to avoid those, with how much bigger her opponent is.

She's grins back, "Alright. Good luck, Onyx. May the best Gembound win," and then she's off. Tourmaline dashes past Onyx's feet to his left. Right as she passes his knees, she channels her magic into her paws with her next stride. And just as calculated, it would cause the ground to shudder, as if something far larger had fallen in her stead.

ROUND 1/?

100%

ATTEMPT: knock V-Onyx-Three aside
DEFENSE: going fast
INJURIES: none

@V-Onyx-Three

"You as well." Then the battle was on. He instantly snapped into focus.

Okay she was... coming closer? He recalled how Helion would use a combination of physical and magical abilities when fighting, often using close proximity to land more accurate magical attacks. V-Onyx-Three is very aware that this was a good opportunity to try and land a crippling blow, but reminded himself of the fact that this was a spar. A true spar, unlike previous "spars" which had turned out to be a lot more like murder attempts.

He kicked outwards with his left leg as she dashed nearby, attempting to trip her up. But regardless of whether that succeeded, the following magic imbued into the ground was a sudden unsteady force that knocked him to the right. In that period of time, he was set off balance, focusing on finding his footing.

Round: 1/?
Attempt: Trip Tourmaline
Defense: Thick fur, spikes
Injuries: None

@Tourmaline