Here we go again. I present to you Serene Catraso, written by Minque and Rhys, written by lord Revan.

Ok, this was a hard one. Both were described as extremely defensive and unwilling to make the first blow. Also, both are telepaths and I kinda hate telepathic combat so I had to smash that possibility into the ground quick. In the end I decided however that Rhys was a tad bit more aggressive and turned her into the aggressor. Anyway, I hope you have a good time and I hope I've portrayed them well.


Rhys vs Serene

Once again a battle was about to begin in Dagon’s realm. Two mortals would satisfy his lust for blood in a battle that would only allow one to walk away. The Daedric prince had trouble remaining in his throne, so did adrenaline course through his veins and did the excitement build with each passing beat of his heart.
,,Let it begin!” He roared.

Two shapes took form in the pit. The first to appear was the Imperial known as Serene Catraso. She felt frightened as she found herself in this desolate pit again.
,,Not again. Let it be a dream.” She whispered. Yet the red sheen of a Daedric Dai-Katana beckoned to her as it was pressed into the ground by its blade. She shooke her head and pressed her hands together. While she knew there was no escape, she felt reluctant to grab that accursed thing and use it. Just thinking of what was coming made her feel sick.

The winds howled as the second fighter appeared. With her face concealed by a dark sash, it was hard to see who or what she was. Yet her dark skin betrayed her as a Dunmer, or something superficially similar. She leaned on her staff and gazed upon her opponent without uttering a single sound. Like her opponent, she was reluctant to fight.

They waited, they waited till something would happen. This something came in the form of Mehrunes Dagon himself as he appeared in the arena as a fourarmed giant.
,,What is this cowardice?! Fight, or you shall both die!” He roared impatiently. He glared from one to the other, with a hand hovering threateningly near the monstrous axe tied to his back. The masked woman closed her eyes and nodded. Fighting was the best option.

,,My name is Rhys, the Narynn.” She said, just loud enough to be heard over the winds.
,,Serene Catraso.” Serene answered, nodding as well. Rhys’ staff crackled as two silvery blades of energy erupted from its ends.
,,Let’s get this over with.” Rhys spoke and dashed across the vast emptiness of the arena, much to Dagon’s delight. Serene now knew there was no other way out. With a heavy sigh, she took hold of the dark blade and pulled it free from the sand.
,,Yes, let’s get this over with.” She answered and raised the sword.

They met, the staff swung around, the katana moved to intercept the shining blade. The weapons clashed, sparks flying from the impact. Yet where two others would have locked blades and tried to win through brute strength in a pushing match, the two women disengaged immediately. Rhys rolled away from a swing that never came.
,,She doesn’t want to fight.” The Narynn realized.
,,No, I don’t.”
Both recoiled visibly. They had been surprised when their thoughts made contact.
,,So we’re both telepaths.” Serene transmitted. Rhys nodded and drew up a mental barrier.
,,Yes, but I won’t let you take control of me.” She sent before shutting her mind out from any external influences.

The Narynn figured she had to change her approach. It was possible that this Serene had read all of her moves by now and could keep up in a duel till they both dropped to the floor from exhaustion. She would have to take a different approach. A stealthy one. She focussed and seemed to have vanished from the arena.

Serene looked around her for her opponent. She couldn’t see the Narynn, yet she could feel that she was still near. If she focussed, she could just feel her mind brushing against the barrier. But to do that, she would have to drop her own barrier, which would leave her open to a telepathic assault.
,,She is here, but where?”

Her movements froze. Had she seen it, or hadn’t she? It had appeared as a grain of sand that moved, pushed away by the weight of an invisible foot. Or had it been her nerves, strained by the battle and horrified by the thought of the blood that would be spilled? But it couldn’t harm to know for certain. She cast the spell of magelight and peered at the sand-covered floor while the shadows receded under the influence of the sphere that rose up to the sky.

,,Countered.” Rhys noted in silence. She had been hiding within the shadows, yet now that they were shrinking at an alarming pace, she would become visible any moment.
,,Then I shall move back to the first plan. She has her back turned.” She sprang forth from the shadows she had been hiding in and ignited her staff. This sound reached Serene’s ears and she jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding the deadly current. Rhys had left her back wide open as she passed and closed her eyes for the inevitable end. Yet the end didn’t come. When she spun around, she saw that the Imperial hadn’t moved after her dodge.
,,I could have killed you, either with this sword or with…that horrible spell. Yet I didn’t. Because I’m not ready for it, not yet.” Serene thought. She could feel her eyes well up and struggled to control the tears. She absolutely despised violence in any form, even more if it had lethal consequences.

,,She doesn’t want to win.” Rhys told herself and stabbed with her staff, spinning it around as it arced towards the other woman. Like last time, the Dai-Katana came in to intercept. Again the two weapons collided in a cloud of sparks and again both disengaged before any real contact had been made.
,,Yet she doesn’t want to lose either.”

Hmmm intriguing matchup. I'm going to have to go with Rhys though. Serene's reluctance is going to be her undoing in this battle. She can't simply defend the entire time and give up chances to defeat her oppenent. Eventually, something will get past her defences.

Ah, but in Morrowind you can knock opponents unconscious!

Well, these duels are all to the "death". But you're new to the Clash of the Titans, so you probably didn't know that.

This isn't technically setup Morrowind-style. The backdrop just happens to be in Oblivion and the characters are races from the game and some of the equipment utilised by some of the characters are straight from the game. Other than that, a lot of these characters have unique fighting styles and even spells that aren't from the game.

I quoted death because when a character is defeated their basically sent back to the realm they came from and their memory of actually participating in the duels are erased. The person who wins doesn't know that and legitmately thinks they killed someone though.

Me? Sneak back into the forums? Never!

+1 Serene

Two defensive fighters? Where have I seen this before?

Having fully reflected (har!) now, I shall be choosing Serene. But a hard choice it is.

Hm, yeah, that was supposed to be a joke. When you're writing your own story of course you can do whatever you want.

Well, this started out well, then it just got flat-out one-sided...... Great interpretation of Rhys, Jack. Doesn't matter if you win or lose, so long as it's a great fight. *Weeps at the desktop*

So Mehrunes Dagon is a real jerkhole huh?

I actually don't know what you mean by that, but yes. When was the Prince of Destruction ever a nice guy you'd want to live next to?

Excellent interpretation of Serene! Ha...yes she hates violence, but you are so right in stating she doesn´t want to loose a fight!...This will be a thrill I do say!

Sorry man, I didn't pick up on the joke. Normally I take what's written seriously unless there's an emoticon (which I now see you did use as well, my perception skills are failing me!). I just thought it as odd more than anything. But I still apologise.

Hehe, looks like I'm the only one who has hope for Rhys. And honestly it wasn't just because she defeated Simion either . I legitmately think she has an upper hand on Serene. But that's just one man's opinion.

Never ever underestimate a woman who doesn´t like violence!

Ok, I'm closing the poll. Congratulations, Minque. And here I was, inwardly voting for Rhys.

Oh yay! She´s done it again! Now I´m waiting for your description of her battle! Ha..I guess most of the battles she has done are written by others than myself! I think that is somewhat significant of my (lack of) ability to write battlescenes!

Practice makes perfect, Minque!

I should really request to write another one of these. Perhaps after this weekend. I'm certain that I'll have more time on my hands since I finish my last two exams ever for high school on Monday.

Well, MM. The Marthyn vs Luper match is open. (yeah, I keep pressing on that one. What can I say, I'm biased.)

And here is the conclusion. Dang, how do you get a pacifist to kill someone? The answer is: rough medicine. Sorry for it being so short. I couldn't think of anything to make it longer. At least, anything I hadn't already done before.



The battle continued as Mehrunes Dagon watched. He was happy for as long as it would last, but he would prefer there to be a certain more….lethalness to the fight. As it was now, hours could pass without even as much as a single drop of blood being spilled. That was not what he had in mind. He waved one of his hands, forcing the realm to change to the shape he’d visualized through his immortal will. The ground rumbled. The sand shifted, revealing the bare floor underneath. Cracks appeared in the strong Ebony, spreading rapidly and branching like trees. The center of the arena begun to rise as boiling lava flowed over the walls to fill the pit.

Both women interrupted their duel to observe the changed scenario.
,,Obviously, the lava will continue to rise till there is not enough room left to stand.” Serene noted. Rhys nodded and dashed for the growing pillar.
,,She who has the high ground, wins.”

Serene didn’t follow instantly.
,,It would be so much easier to just wait here. Then I wouldn’t have to kill anyone. Is dying better than to kill?” She asked herself. But as the liquefied rock continued to flow, the ground cracked and split right under her feat. If she would stay where she were, she would inevitably fall in the lava. Now a second voice emerged within her mind. A voice that spoke of self-preservation. A voice that overrode all other motivations. She gave chase, her limbs moving on their own as if in a dream.

Rhys turned at the sound of the approaching footsteps. Serene was following, and she now looked determined. The Narynn had no time to engage in another duel. She focussed her will, moving the air around her. With a mental flick of her hand, she sent the tendrils of air to pull and push at the Imperial’s ankles. Serene stumbled and for a moment, it would look as if she was going to fall. Yet somehow, she managed to recover her balance.

Rhys had now reached the top of the spiralling tower that had grown in the arena. When she looked down, she saw only a lake of steaming lava, a lake that was still rising, now nearly nipping at her opponent’s feet. Seren stubbornly continued to climb, using every handhold available, ignoring the sharp edges of the Ebony cutting into her skin.
,,There is not enough room for both of us to stand. So now you must fall.” Rhys said and kicked down with a foot. Her boot brushed past the other woman’s hand who grabbed the ankle without further thinking.

Serene’s eyes widened as she realized what she’d done.
,,No, forgive me!” She cried, lost to the world, ash seeping between her fingers.

uhhhhhhh.....that was a mean trick! My my...Renie is really not nice even though she felt bad by throwing poor Rhys into the lava.....

Well done Jackie!

Omg, omg omg... omfg!!!! More fiction about Serene?!?! I am attwitter!! My tail feathers are in danger of shaking out I am so excited! I have been waiting for more about Serene. I have to finish laundry right now but then I'll be back. If I don't fall into the canal from trying to hurry back so fast ....

Excellent finish to the duel. That was probably one of the more appropriate ways Serene would unwillingly kill someone. Her sorrow afterwards only adds to your understanding of her character. Very well written.

PS- I might just sign myself up for that Mathyn/Luper duel. I want to write a Bloodlust update first though. Hopefully I'll force myself to do that sometime this week.