I'm Leaving Forever (a HTTYD Runaway Fanfic ~ Book 1)

33 - The First Trial: Part 3

The fight went on for longer than Astrid would've liked it to. Sure sometimes, she liked the thrill of going up against an opponent as strong, or even stronger than her. It was what sharpened her skills and tactics, and overall, it made her an incredible fighter. In a way, the number of fights she found herself in, whether it was simply a training drill or an actual mission, was beneficial depending on what angle she was willing to look at it. Astrid felt like she had definitely developed what she had during the several months it had been since she first set foot on the Edge, however, it didn't mean she wanted a fight to drag on for too long. Especially if it was in a situation like this.

At first, she thought she had this in the bag. Both her and her opponent surged forward towards each other; one with an double-bladed axe and the other with a sword and a shield. When Astrid deemed herself close enough, her axe dropped from its position in the air, and the blades slammed into the stone floor of the arena. That would probably dull the tips of the axe, but Astrid didn't pay much attention to that. Not only was this axe not hers, but she was more focused on how the momentum of her running start up enabled her to prepare a kick to her opponent. The axe  was merely there for support. However, Astrid didn't predict that the warrior would be able to immediately dodge the advance as quickly as he did.

She would admit, that although it was a powerful move that would land devastating blow, it wasn't the most discrete. It could be predicted as soon as the axe made contact with the floor, and because Astrid had the time to think about this move beforehand on the Edge, she was well aware of this, but that didn't stop her from being a little surprised. After all, that attacks was a quick one, no one could deny it. Not her, her opponent or even the audience surrounding them.

But that was only one of the surprises that would come towards Astrid. As soon as she landed on her two feet, she hardly had the time to look up when suddenly, a shield came flying towards her like a frisbee. The metal rim would've hit her if it had not been for her instinctual response to shift the grip on her axe to fit a fighting stance and prepare a swing. It enabled her to quickly deflect the incoming shield despite her surprise. Astrid couldn't even think about how much of an unorthodox move it was to get rid of one's shield like that. Not when the second she got rid of that, she was forced to defend herself with the handle of her axe as her opponent brought down his sword onto her. Astrid knew this little battle of endurance and strength wasn't good to last long. Although she was capable of blocking and shield herself, the axe handle she was using already had the blade of her opponent's sword buried half-way through. If this continued, the handle would snap. She was be completely exposed. The fact that her posture wasn't the best for defending didn't help her situation; her back and shoulder were taking most of the force instead of her legs, which were supposed to be where the main support comes from when defending. And because her legs were focused on holding her upright, she couldn't use them to kick away her opponent without losing her balance, and Astrid didn't think she could coordinate an effective kick from the way she was standing anyway, even if she somehow managed to maintain her balance.

However, it seemed this fight would provide a chance for her to get out of this little situation. As the warrior retracted his sword from Astrid's axe, she took it as an opportunity to quickly rectify her posture and put some distance between herself and opponent. It seems that he only pulled the sword back just so he could bring it down again, but luckily for Astrid, most of the impact was taken by the metal armour resting on her shoulders, ready for a time just like this. The blade slammed into her left gauntlet, but to Astrid's horror, the swing was backed up by enough force to completely cripple the armour. The metal gave way with a loud clank and collapsed on the stone floor in pieces, leaving Astrid's shoulder exposed; and if that wasn't bad enough, the blade managed to make a clean cut on her arm right down to her elbow.