With his spear clashing against Vermilion's weapon, hate jolted through him. Not for his opponent's but rather the situation. From the beginning, Avery knew he and Topaz were at a disadvantage, but with the sight of a spear being thrust right back at him, he felt that the battle was spiraling more into his opponents’ favor.

The attack landed on his throat and sent him flying onto his back. His weapon was no longer in his grasp as his hands were not grasping at his neck, and despite the ground being that of a more agreeable surface, Avery still managed to get the wind knocked out of him upon impact with the sand, and for at least a moment, he was subdued.

---

Aura: 61%   ► 43% (▼ 6% x 3)
Fatigue: 51%   ► 57% (▲ 6%)

Try this thing and see if it works.

kbye

Avery didn't expect Vermilion to catch his fall with his weapon, though if was still comparing him to his sparring partner, maybe he should have. Though his mind caught Vermilion's counterattack in time, his body was lagging having put all of Avery's weight into his attack.

Avery took the attack to his chest. The impact of the blow was dampened by his semblance though at the cost of additional fatigue. He stumbled back a couple steps, but having caught wind of the attack beforehand, was able to recover from it quickly. Avery raised back his weapon, and as he sent it jabbing forward[1], he also re-extended the spear to its original length. At the same time, he deactivated his semblance in hopes that the sudden liberation of his hand would cause Vermilion to hesitate, even if just for a moment.

[1] – 8%

---

Aura: 67%   ► 61% (▼ 6%)
Fatigue: 39%   ► 51% (▲ 12%)

"You're going to need to hit way harder than that if you want to beat me."

A pump of adrenaline washed away Avery’s dazed state. The cogs of his mind quickly accelerated, and he was able to see the battle(field) with clarity once again. Since Avery didn’t have much of a chance to before, a flood of thoughts concerning his opponents burst into his head and caused the world around him to stand still for just a moment. Spear-user with semblance included, aggressive, spirited. That was all well and good, but what stood out about Vermilion the most was that he reminded Avery of one of his dueling partners: Annabelle (not pulled out of ass).

Knowing that he had to be decisive if he wanted to win against an opponent that was remotely like her, Avery rallied himself. The world around him was slowly brought back into motion, and the transformation of Vermilion’s weapon clicked slowly at first, accelerating like the clangs of a dropped metal ball. In the same window that Vermilion was transforming his weapon, Avery followed suit though it wasn’t nearly an intricate: he moved his hand up the shaft closer to the head and significantly compacted the butt of the spear.

As the transformation of Vermilion’s weapon neared its end, Avery already had an idea of what it was and what its owner planned to do with it. Avery found it odd that Vermilion would resort to a punch when 1) he had a tactical advantage with his semblance and 2) Avery had just disengaged with his partner whose main weapons were fists (at least when they fought seeing as Vivian had an SMG stashed away).

With Vermilion rearing to life, Avery did as well. He dug his left foot into the sand and pivoted hard, adjusting based on the results of his previous failed attempt, and wrapped his right hand near the base of Vermilion’s weapon as it went by. As he was turning, the spears that were behind him came into view, and while the possibility of pulling Vermilion’s weight through them was nice, Avery opted to take his opponents advice instead. Avery clicked on his semblance, specifically targeting Vermilion’s weapon making it feel significantly heavier, and pulled Vermilion’s weight forward hoping to throw him off-balance. Finally, Avery leaned forward toward his opponent’s massed, as if trying to drive a stake through his heart from the opposite end of his body, sent a heavy stab at the side of Vermillion’s ribcage [1].

[1] – 10-12%

---

Aura: 67%   ► 67% (▼ 0%)
Fatigue: 27%  ► 39% (▲ 12%)

Aurelia raised her weapon to block of the attack, its impact forcing her feet to dig deeper into the ground and sending a jolt of pain into her palms. Moving on its own to protect itself, her body kicked [1] at Ceramite's abdominal region in an effort to remove itself from the danger. Aurelia herself took advantage of the opportunity and sent a vertical swipe aimed at Ceramite’s dominant shoulder [2].

[1] – 2%
[2] – 6%

---

Aura: 56% ► 54% (▼ 2%) + 0.5% (▼ 0%)(▲ 0.5%) overcharge
Fatigue: 37% ► 41% (▲ 4%)
Ammo: [-----] || [-----]

Despite being down and in pain, Aurelia remained combat aware. Being in the situation she was in, she had no choice but to wait until Ceramite left himself vulnerable; any sooner and she'd still be at a heavy disadvantage. As Ceramite reared up to land a heavy strike, she rolled herself out of the way, scrambled back to her feet, and re-armed herself with her weapon which fortunately hadn’t landed far.

Aurelia set herself up in a defensive, reactionary stance as she waited for Ceramite’s next move.

---

Aura: 56% ► 56% (▼ 0%) + 0% (▼ 3.75%)(▲ 0%) overcharge
Fatigue: 34% ► 37% (▲ 3%)
Ammo: [-----] || [-----]

Aurelia quickly reacted to the parry: she dug a foot into the ground and spun herself, aiming the other blade at Ceramite. It was midway during her spin that she heard the gun go off and she realized that her hope that it was empty was a false one. The shot drilled straight below her armpit, the impact knocking her to the ground and disarming her.

---

Aura:  71% ► 56% (▼ 15%) + 3.75% (▼ 5%)(▲ 3.75%) overcharge
Fatigue: 22% ► 34% (▲ 12%)
Ammo: [-----] || [-----]