Chapter Eleven: The Mark of a Great Man
The required hour flashed by in a blur. Nemo had taken little notice of the passing time as he was led off to prepare for the upcoming duel. He had turned inward to settle himself, choosing to ignore the excited rush of people around him.
Now he was standing at the edge of the ring, a borrowed blade in hand as the Tau'ka warrior Streit approached the other side. He wished that he had a sword of his own with him, but his blade had been destroyed in the battle against the alter-ego of Dante, the Fantom's lieutenant, back in Mongolia. He hadn't had a chance to replace it yet, and he felt that lack now.
Even without a proper blade in his grip, Nemo felt no fear. Streit struck him as an emotional hothead. Tactics would always win out over emotions in the end.
Something caught his attention from the corner of his eye. Nemo turned his head slightly and saw what it was. The rest of the League had pushed their way to the front of the crowd, taking little notice of those who had to get out of their way. He spotted Daria pull one complaining individual aside and speak to him sharply. Whatever she said, it made her victim immediately quiet and slink off. Nemo thought that interesting- apparently Daria had a fair bit of status here- more than she let on, perhaps?
Back to the matter at hand. The captain studied his opponent as Streit went through a series of warm-ups. The Tau'ka was substantially taller than he was, and more powerfully built. He couldn't judge speed and reflexes just yet, but he would assume for now that they were remarkable. Streit certainly moved like a fighter.
Nemo suddenly realized that this might not go quite as he had planned. But the idea that he might lose never crossed his mind. That was his way- to not even consider the possibility of failure.
A humming barrier appeared around the Dueling Ring. Nemo started slightly, wondering what it was. He, Streit, and the sole referee were now completely shut off from the onlookers. That made him a little leery- why would such separation be necessary? Neither of the two Tau'ka still in the ring seemed disconcerted about the barrier, which made him consider the possibility that it was standard procedure.
Of course- Daria had mentioned that more or less all of her people had some sort of psychic ability. It would make sense for them to have some sort of power-blocking mechanism to prevent onlookers from using their powers to influence a duel. Otherwise, what was the point in settling disagreements in battle, if allies on the outside could turn the tide?
Streit and the referee approached the center of the ring, motioning for Nemo to follow suit. The captain resettled his grip on the borrowed sword and stepped forward.
"We have gathered," the referee proclaimed. He spoke into some sort of amplification device that made his guttural voice ring throughout the hall. The onlookers quieted immediately. "To bear witness to a Duel of Settlement. To the death, may he who is in the right be victorious." The Tau'ka, his official announcement over, moved out of the way of the two warriors. "You may begin."
Under normal circumstances, when approaching an unknown assailant, a duelist will circle his opponent, trying to get their measure before striking. The Tau'ka must follow a different school of thought, Nemo decided, because as soon as the referee had moved out of the way, Streit lunged in to attack.
The stocky Indian man dodged aside, trying to flick the tip of his sword at Streit as he went by. The blade was heavier than he was used to, fouling the maneuver. Streit whirled and lunged again. Nemo managed to bat away the blade, but only just.
With Streit's sword no longer aimed at him, Nemo struck like lightning, the knife-like edge of his hand catching the Tau'ka hard behind and just below the shoulder joint. He stumbled, cursing, but recovered faster than Nemo had thought would be possible.
Wary now, Streit backed off. Now they returned to the circling they had so blithely skipped over.
OSCOSCOSCOSCOSC
Daria had used her rank to commandeer several places near the edge of the ring for herself and the League so they could watch the fight with an unimpeded view. The seven- herself, the rest of the League, along with Vader and Fenyx Asopiram- crowded together. The humans watched, stunned into silence as the duel began with Streit's fierce opening attack. Daria was muttering under her breath, a quiet commentary.
"Keshan Hawk-Strike," she identified Streit's first attack. "He's following the Emiss school of blade training- no surprise there, that's his home base. Nemo will have to watch himself- Emiss fighters don't broadcast moves- good, Nemo, he wasn't expecting that."
As she and her companions watched, the two duelists lunged at almost exactly the same time, weapons a blur. She winced- that had been close.
"Streit's a bit faster, I think," Vader said quietly. His blue eyes were fixed, like those of the others, on the fighting pair. "But neither knows the other's style. That balances things a bit."
"B-balances?" Jekyll stammered. "How do you balance that?" He waved at Nemo and Streit, who had closed again. They were too close for conventional blade work and had resorted to hand-to-hand fighting.
"Nemo cheats, that's how," Sawyer said approvingly as the captain slammed an elbow into Streit's face.
The Tau'ka staggered backwards, shaking his head to clear it. He'd avoided a broken nose- but barely. Already his left eye was starting to blacken. His mouth moved- he was cursing his opponent. Then, incredibly, a second blade appeared in his free hand as he angled his torso away from Nemo, concealing the new weapon's appearence.
Vader was furious. "Foul!" he yelled at the referee, raising his harsh voice to be heard over the crowd. "Unequal utilization of powers! He's using an illusion!"
The referee ignored him, strolling causally around the ring as he watched the two fighters. He seemed entirely oblivious to the fact that Streit had an illusion-blade.
"He can't hear you," Daria said in disgust. Her mouth was a thin, angry line at the other Tau'ka's behavior. "The barriers are up- they block sound and power."
"Maybe Tau'ka power," Vader growled dangerously as he raised a hand in preparation for calling on his formidable Force abilities. The Intelligence agent whirled, yanking her friend's mechanical arm down- or trying to, anyway.
"Vader, you can't!"
"And why shouldn't 'e?" Skinner demanded. "Your pal down there is cheating, isn't 'e?"
She yanked again on Vader's arm, distracting him. "Vader, we can't interfere!" the Tau'ka said. "Nemo has to do it on his own. If he wins, that puts the League in a better position with the Council by proving they are combat-equal."
"They?" Mina asked, raising an eyebrow.
Daria turned to her, stung by this questioning of her loyalties. "I am a member of the League, and a Tau'ka," she said shortly. "But the Council doesn't see it that way. And they are very jealous of their people."
"As we can see," the vampiress replied, gesturing to Streit. "How do we know that they didn't put him up to that trick?"
Daria opened her mouth, but Vader, still plainly irritated by the breach of fair play, put a metal hand on her shoulder to silence his friend. "The Verris Council couldn't have," he said gruffly. "Streit is from the base on Emiss, not here. His superiors wouldn't have known about you ahead of time."
"So he's just cheating," Sawyer said disgustedly.
The Tau'ka nodded grimly. She was hurt that the others could question her allegiance. It was a plain and simple fact that they were human and she was not, to be true, but hadn't she done her best to support them against a race that generally thought humans were a lesser species? What had happened with Streit and Nemo was entirely out of her control- though she would like satisfaction from the other Tau'ka herself.
Unfortunately, that was an impossibility at this point. The Council in all their chauvinistic wisdom, wanted the humans to prove themselves. Having a Tau'ka stand up for them would not go over well with the leaders.
Daria gritted her teeth and went back to watching the fight. Then she gasped.
OSCOSCOSCOSCOSCOSC
Nemo blinked in surprise as he suddenly found himself fending off not one blade, but two. Where had the second weapon come from? Surely Streit had not been carrying it before…?
He twisted away from the sword in his opponent's left hand, bringing his up to block the identical one in his right. The metal swept right through the other blade as if it weren't even there. The lack of expected resistance made him overbalance, and he stumbled slightly.
Pain exploded up and down the right side of his body as Streit kicked him hard in the hip. His leg folded up underneath him, sending him to the floor of the ring. Instinctively, Nemo rolled away as he fell, his sword still in hand. What had happened to Streit's blade? His own had gone through it as if merely passing through air. How was that possible? It was as if the other sword was not really there…
Not really there… There was a thought. Nemo scrambled back to his feet, testing his aching leg. It held his weight- barely. He would need to be careful now.
Streit whirled both blades, tracing intricate patterns in the air. The display was a good one, designed to intimidate. Nemo stepped back, watching his opponent's swords. The one in his right seemed slightly translucent, and almost seemed to be glowing a bit.
He knew that the Tau'ka had various 'psychic' abilities- telepathy, telekinesis, precognition, and so forth. Had Daria ever mentioned an ability that allowed the user to make objects that weren't there seem to be?
Streit lunged towards Nemo, the faintly glowing blade now in his left hand. He made a move as if he were going to strike with it. Nemo ignored it, blocking the other blade instead. The glowing blade passed through his body, causing no pain and leaving no mark. That settled it- the glowing sword was a fake of some kind. Nemo smiled grimly to himself as he backed up, feigning a limp that implied he was more injured than he actually was.
The Tau'ka, seeing that his advantage with the fake sword was gone, made it vanish, taking a two-handed grip on his real sword. He advanced, seeming to sense an imminent victory against his injured opponent. Nemo feebly blocked his attacks, again, feigning weakness. While his hip still hurt, it was nowhere near as debilitating as he pretended. In addition, he had long ago mastered mental disciplines designed to block pain. He was just biding his time now.
Finally, Streit had Nemo backed up against the edge of the dueling ring. The Tau'ka wore a predatory grin as he advanced. Quick as a flash, he darted in and hooked the tip of his sword into the hand-guard of Nemo's blade, ripping it out of the captain's hand. Nemo didn't flinch, releasing his grip on his weapon to avoid broken fingers as it was torn away. While Streit's guard was open, Nemo attacked, shedding the affected weakness. His blows were fierce and debilitating, striking solar plexus, gut, and just above the knee in a series of kicks and punches.
Streit, unprepared for such a vicious assault, dropped his sword so he could raise his arms to fend off the blows. In that moment, Nemo kicked him hard in the belly and caught the sword before it hit the ground. The Tau'ka was knocked to the floor, gasping for air as he curled into a ball to prevent further injury. The captain stood over him, holding the point of the sword at his throat.
"You have won, human," the referee informed him. "He is yours to kill."
Nemo gazed down at Streit, who wore and expression of fear and anger on his face. "I see," he said gravely. Then he shook his head slightly. Streit's arrogance and dislike were only natural, an imbedded part of the Tau'ka psyche. They were a proud, fierce race. Nemo couldn't kill Streit for that- seeing him beaten was enough to make up for his insults. "There is a saying among my people that mercy is the mark of a great man." Delicately, the captain pricked his opponent in the stomach with the tip of his blade. The inflicted wound was not seriously deep, but he expected it would leave a scar to remind the Tau'ka not to underestimate humans in the future. He gave an ironic shrug. "It appears that I am merely a good man, not a great one."
Author's note: The inspiration for this scene came from the episode of Firefly entitled 'Shindig'. Without copious viewings of Firefly, this chapter never would have been written. Thank you Joss Whedon.