Gareth Bolton (garethbolton) wrote in agos, @ 2008-11-10 09:26:00 |
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Entry tags: | gareth bolton, kyra tyrell, tyrith lannister |
Who: Gareth Bolton and others
When: Day 60?
Where: Where trial by combats are held. I assume the yard of the Red Keep, but that place has seen way too much action. >.<;;
Rating: R, to start, for violence. Will be switched to Friends-Only if it gets too Bolton-y.
Status: Open.
Gareth knelt patiently, looking across the yard at the kingsguard who fought for the Crown as the High Septon droned on about the justice of the Father. He had spent the days watching Ser Winchester practice, and the kingsguard did practice the days leading to the trial, knowing that he could die. Gareth studied the way the man moved, the way he fought, trying to get into the knight's head.
Now, Gareth would see what he had learned.
They stood as the High Septon retreated. The kingsguard saluted the Crown and then Gareth, Gareth followed suit, although his eyes fell on Kyra instead.
Both combatants were lightly armored, Ser Winchester in pristine white and Gareth wearing the Flayed Man on his tabard. People had gathered on the walls to watch, their voices contributed to a white noise in the background. Occasionally, Gareth could hear the shout of a child.
He and the kingsguard circled each other slowly, swords drawn, getting closer to melee distance with each step. Winchester lashed out, almost over-reaching, and Gareth parried easily. The kingsguard was able to dodge back in time to avoid being slashed as Gareth pressed an attack. Instead of drawing back, Gareth kept closing the distance between them, hounding the knight.
Their swords crashed together and Gareth took advantage of the close proximity, turning his body to drive a vicious blow with his free hand at the kingsguard's throat. Winchester stumbled back, coughing, and kept moving back to stay out of range while he caught his breath.
The combat took a long time, encouragements shouted down from the walls. Winchester was being cautious and Gareth had all the patience in the world. Then the insults rained down, peasants and minor nobles making accusations of cowardice. "Don't be rash, boy, words are nothing, only swords matter." Something Lord Umber had said, and Gareth always took to heart. The slurs and shouts became again just white noise.
Ser Winchester, on the other hand, was becoming impatient, motivated to aggressiveness by the shouting of the bystanders. He launched himself at Gareth and Gareth danced around the blows, dodging and parrying them.
In the end, it was the quality of the blades that signaled the end of the fight. The kingsguard swung hard and Gareth moved to parry.
There was a sickening snap and light flashed off shards of metal as they spun across the yard to fall useless in the dirt. Gareth's sword was broken and the kingsguard was shifting after his parry to make a responding strike.
Gareth tried to roll away from the kingsguard's riposte.
Not quite far enough. The knight's whole blade caught Gareth in the shoulder, spinning him awkwardly back into range of the kingsguard's sword and putting Gareth completely off balance. Not the will of the gods, but a bad roll of the dice.
Gareth looked up as the kingsguard loomed above him with both hands on the hilt of his blade, bearing down. He caught sight of a gambit then. With a sudden surge of motion, Gareth threaded between the loop of the kingsguard's arms. He caught the other man through his leather gorget with the jagged broken end of his sword.
For what seemed like an eternity, they stood there, almost like lovers embracing. Then the kingsguard's head snapped back violently with an eruption of blood and they fell to the ground together, the kingsguard's head lolling at an impossible angle.
The other man was most certainly dead. Gareth pulled himself free, pulled his broken sword free. He was covered in blood, baptized in it.
He stood raised the broken sword, dripping with gore, to salute Kyra. The honour of being Queen of Love and Beauty he would never win for her, but freedom bought in bloody death was her crown this day.
The crowd was silent.