Re: Grand Joust in Jerusalem: RP and Result Thread

[House of Judah]

Ty Kelderssen VS Ari ben Yitzchak
1: Miss/Body(1)
2: Miss/Miss
3: Body(1)/Body(1)
4: Helm(2)/Body(1), Ari ben Yitzchak received moderate injuries
5: Body(1)/Miss
4-3 Lances, Ty Kelderssen wins (3 Flags)

Karpos VS Aloys de Narbonnes
1: Miss/Helm(2), Karpos received moderate injuries
2: Miss/Body(1)
3: Miss/Body(1)
4: Helm(2)/Body(1)
5: Miss/Helm(2), Karpos received moderate injuries
2-7 Lances, Aloys de Narbonnes wins (3 Flags)

Marcus VS Magnus Henry
1: Helm(2)/Body(1)
2: Miss/Body(1)
3: Body(1)/Miss
4: Miss/Miss
5: Miss/Helm(2), Marcus received minor injuries
3-4 Lances, Magnus Henry wins (3 Flags)

Kadir of Sari VS Gnarls Sigmunsion
1: Miss/Miss
2: Miss/Miss
3: Body(1)/Miss
4: Body(1)/Body(1)
5: Body(1)/Miss
3-1 Lances, Kadir of Sari wins (3 Flags)

---

RANKINGS AFTER THE FIFTH MATCHES

#	RIDER	REALM	F	L	U
1	Ari ben Benyamin	JUD	12	30	0
2	Gnarls Sigmunsion	JOR	11	11	1
3	Magnus Henry	JOR	10	21	1
4	Kadir of Sari	KHW	9	17	0
5	Aloys de Narbonnes	JUD	8	22	1
6	Ty Kelderssen	VAN	6	21	0
7	Karpos	CYB	4	16	1
8	Marcus	VAR	3	15	0

[Vannishlands]

The long and lean Vannish knight lay against the trunk of a lonely olive tree in the field behind the family's home. Under his arm was the woman he had been getting to know over the past few days.

They had figured out each other's names. They communicated a lot by drawing, something they learned they were both decent at. They'd also point at something and state it's name in their language.

Her name was Chava bat Ezra. Ty thought the name sounded regal and must have had some meaning behind it. He would have been surprised to know her first name meant Eve. At this stage, Ty could not have foreseen the future and known that 20th century historians would later call her the mother of all Vangazi Jews.

The fights had been tough on Kelderssen. He had taken another concussion two fights ago, along with a nasty cut on the side of his head. His opponent scored hit after hit on Ty's helmet. It took a lot to get his mind right and win his latest match.

The family's patriarch had given him some powder to take, ground from herbs grown in the backyard. Ty had no idea what he had been given. But it soothed the pounding pain in his head. Other pastes were applied to his wounds and bruises.

Chava was all too happy to apply these ointments to his body. Ty could swear she was berating him for living such a violent lifestyle. It didn't seem like she was putting him down, but more so telling him off for not being cautious enough.

That's what it sounded like, based on what he could understand. She would point at a bruise and wag her finger and say the word he learned meant no. Ty would laugh, she would playfully slap the side of his face that wasn't injured.

It was her he thought of during his latest joust. It helped him focus on something other than the pain in his ribs or the fog of old concussions. Of course during the run up of each course, he had to focus on the strike. But he had a motivation.

It was not easy wearing his armor with a broken rib. It was a pinching pain, that spiked every time his opponent scored a hit. It was a part of being a soldier and an officer at that. In this day and age, pain is not something to be feared. It must be used. It will be there in one form or another. The Vannish Army teaches you to use it as motivation. It is built into a soldier in their earliest stages of training.

Ty would feel relieved when he could take his armor off and rest under Chava's watchful eye.

She had not seen any matches yet, but this would change. She would see the next event, with her father finally giving her permission. He had not been blind to his daughter's emotions.

He had decided he would let her leave. He knew some in the community would not agree with his decision. But he knew this foreigner was an important man. He wasn't sure if Ty would be interested in taking his daughter in marriage, but he sensed it coming with the way they looked at each other.

The father had seen it many times in his profession of medicine, when a nurse falls in love with a patient. The father had gone enough as to flat out ask his daughter if she wanted to marry this foreigner.

She would not answer the question and yelled at her dad for embarrassing her. But she walked away blushing.

Now the man would have to find a way to convince these two to get married. He just hoped they weren't being indecent when he was off treating locals or trading herbs and powder. He hoped the Vannish had more decency than that.

Luckily for him, the Vannish Army of which Ty was an officer, also taught patience and morality.

Ty was thinking of how he could bring Chava with him as well.

Meanwhile, the squire Franton had been working the fields and spending time with the father. The older man gave the Vannishman seeds for some of the herbs he was growing. He took him through the fields and showed him which shrubs each one was for and tried to explain they were important. It was hard not speaking the same language.

Franton figured they had to have been medical. It wasn't an accident that one of the competitors stayed here. Clearly, they wanted Ty to be under medical care. So he figured these herbs were some kind of medicine, used in the various powders and ointments he'd seen used with Ty. Franton kept the seeds tucked away, knowing exactly who to pass them onto back at the Kelder estate.

[House of Judah]

Ari ben Yitzchak & Aloys de Narbonnes

“Seems the Greek’s temper has cooled,” Ari noted.

“Well, he’s not doing so well,” Aloys replied. “Perhaps being hit in the head so many times has finally knocked some sense into his head.”

“Perhaps. So how about it? Will I face you in the championship match?”

“It will be a difficulty. I shall need to win both of my next matches, and those are with the Jorman and the Persian. They’ve been doing well for themselves. Tough matches. You’ve only one challenge left before you. The Varasdan will be no challenge, and there’s your guaranteed path to championship match.”

“There’s always room for surprise, I suppose. Still, you’re a better man than they are Aloys. I’m sure you’ll have victory.”

[House of Judah]

Ty Kelderssen VS Kadir of Sari
1: Miss/Miss
2: Body (1)/Body (1)
3: Miss/Body (1)
4: Helm (2)/Miss
5: Body (1)/Body (1)
4-3, Ty Kelderssen wins (3 Flags)

Karpos VS Marcus
1: Miss/Miss
2: Body (1)/Miss
3: Body (1)/Miss
4: Miss/Body (1)
5: Body (1)/Helm (2), Karpos received moderate injuries


Magnus Henry VS Aloys de Narbonnes
1: Body (1)/Miss
2: Body (1)/Body (1)
3: Unhorse (3)/Body (1), Aloys de Narbonnes received serious injuries
5-2, Magnus Henry wins (3 Flags) and unhorsed his opponent (1 Flag)

Gnarls Sigmunsion VS Ari ben Yitzchak
1: Helm (2)/Body (1)
2: Body (1)/Body (1)
3: Helm (2)/Body (1)
4: Body (1)/Body (1)
5: Miss/Body (1)
6-5, Gnarls Sigmunsion wins (3 Flags)

---

RANKINGS AFTER SIXTH MATCHES

#	RIDER	REALM	F	L	U
1	Magnus Henry	JOR	14	26	2
2	Gnarls Sigmunsion	JOR	14	23	1
3	Ari ben Benyamin	JUD	12	35	0
4	Ty Kelderssen	VAN	9	25	0
5	Kadir of Sari	KHW	9	20	0
6	Aloys de Narbonnes	JUD	8	24	1
7	Karpos	CYB	5	19	1
8	Marcus	VAR	4	18	0

[Vannishlands]

Ty knew this match would be different. He would have at least one person in the stands there solely to root for him. It added a bit of pressure to the run. He tried to picture her face as he fought the pinch in his ribs under the weight of his armor.

The first course was sloppy with both riders missing the other. Chava watched with her hands over her cheeks and her mouth open. She looked even more surprised when both riders scored hits on the second course. The sound echoed throughout the immediate area.

On the third run, she watched in what looked like slow motion as Ty missed and took a hit near his rib injury. The armor actually did a decent job at dispersing the impact, but it struck with a radiating wave that shot right to his injured region.

He fought the pain, steeling his thoughts by focusing on his surroundings. Hazy thoughts of Chava played through his mind as his fjord horse sped down the line towards a charging opponent. Ty felt like time slowed down as he made a slight adjustment to his lance. It scored a hit on the side of the Persian's helmet.

The crowd erupted in a loud cheer, full of whistles hoots and hollers. There was one more course and Ty needed to secure his spot. Both competitors ended up scoring hits on the body, and then it was done. The crowd kept cheering for Ty as he brought his horse out of the arena with a proud-looking trot.

The knight searched the crowd, scanning as hard as he could, but he couldn't see Chava. It was quite crowded and she wasn't tall, after all. He would have to see her later. He wondered what she thought of the fight.

A sense of relief set in, realizing he would not be smacked in the head today.

It would be some time before Ty made it back to the family's home. When he did, Chava would welcome him with a tight embrace. She finally understood what he had been through and could visualize how his injuries occurred. She wanted to try to talk him out of such a lifestyle, but didn't try with the difference in their languages.

Ty was excited to see the pride and the worry in her eyes. He tried to tell her he would be okay. Franton, Ty and the family shared a meal that night and then sat outside by a fire until the night drew late.

[House of Judah]

Ari ben Yitzchak

Ari stood at the edge of the hippodrome’s field, watching as Aloys jousted the Jorman. He shook his head as Aloys’s lance glanced off of Magnus’s armor. The second pass worked better, though the Jorman held the edge. The prince winced during the third tilt, watching as Aloys fell from Aude. He shook his head and turned to one of the Nazoreans.

“So much for us facing each other in the final match.” He looked back out at the field. A stable hand was chasing down the horse. His vision fell on the motionless Aloys. “He’s not moving,” Ari heard himself say. The Nazoreans turned to look, and before anyone knew it Ari was sprinting across the sand. Somewhere along the way, Ari flipped his helmet off. Several Nazoreans and the physician followed behind him. “Aloys!” Ari shouted as a quiet fell over the crowd in the stands.

He finally came to his friend’s body and Ari fell to his knees. He pulled Aloys’s helmet off and lightly hit the side of his face.

“Aloys! Wake up! Open your damn eyes!” The physician came up to the two and began examining Aloys. He pulled his hand away from where he touched the Occitan’s hair, covered in blood. “God, come on Aloys. Wake up. You’re not done yet. You’ve still some work to do yet. Come on, open your eyes.” A groan came from the Christian knight.

“Ari, you’re a very pretty man, but no matter how womanly you may be, you are still too manly. Replace yourself with a woman and then I’ll have a reason to open my eyes.” A laugh burst from Ari, then he pulled up Aloys by the sides of his dome and kissed him on the forehead. He rose to his feet and, together with the physician, helped Aloys to his own. He raised Ari’s arm in the air and a cheer came from the crowd as one of Jerusalem’s favorite sons showed that he still lived. Ari draped Aloys’s arm over his shoulder and helped his friend make his way off the sands.

“I’ve got you, brother. I’ve got you.”

[House of Judah]

Ty Kelderssen VS Magnus Henry
1: Body (1)/Miss
2: Body (1)/Body (1)
3: Miss/Helm (2), Ty Keldersen received moderate injuries
4: Body (1)/Body (1)
5: Body (1)/Body (1)
4-5, Magnus Henry wins (3 Flags)

Karpos VS Gnarls Sigmunsion
1: Miss/Body (1)
2: Miss/Body (1)
3: Body (1)/Miss
4: Unhorse (3)/Helm (2), Gnarls Sigmunsion received minor injuries
4-4, Karpos wins (3 Flags) and unhorsed his opponent (1 Flag)

Marcus VS Ari ben Yitzchak
1: Miss/Miss
2: Body (1)/Unhorse (3)
1-3, Ari ben Yitzchak wins (3 Flags) and unhorsed his opponent (1 Flag)

Kadir of Sari VS Aloys de Narbonnes
1: Miss/Helm (2)
2: Miss/Helm (2)
3: Miss/Miss
4: Miss/Body (1)
5: Miss/Body (1)
0-6, Aloys de Narbonnes wins (3 Flags)

---

STANDINGS AFTER SEVENTH MATCHES

#	RIDER	REALM	F	L	U
1	Magnus Henry	JOR	17	31	2
2	Ari ben Benyamin	JUD	16	38	1
3	Gnarls Sigmunsion	JOR	14	27	1
4	Aloys de Narbonnes	JUD	11	30	1
5	Ty Kelderssen	VAN	9	29	0
6	Karpos	CYB	9	23	2
7	Kadir of Sari	KHW	9	20	0
8	Marcus	VAR	4	19	0

Magnus Henry and Ari ben Yitzchak will face one another in the championship match.

[House of Judah]

Ari ben Yitzchak

Ari took his seat atop Ra’amel. Aloys lifted the first of his prince's lances and handed it to him.

“I only wish we were facing each other right now,” Ari said.

“It is better this way,” Aloys responded. “There will be nothing to hold you back. Leave nothing behind. Ride for glory. Glory for your father. Glory for your kingdom. Glory for Judea.”

“For Judea,” Ari agreed. The horns sounded as Ari guided Ra’amel to the list. Across the hippodrome, he could see the Jorman prince align likewise. Around him he could hear the crowd cheering for their native son, but none so raucously as the Nazoreans and the captain. The horn sounded again as the flag bearers took their places halfway along the list. A bead of sweat rolled down Ari’s face. A final horn blew and the flag bearers whipped their flags before turning and running from the lists.

Ari spurred Ra’amel, and the horse reared up high before bringing its hooves down and thundering forward. The final moments of his father’s tournament had arrived. This was it. When everything would be decided. Ari lowered his lance and watched as the Jorman did the same. Closer they drew. Ari finalized his aim. He finalized his stance in the saddle. Ari finalized his mind.

This was it. The final moments of the joust. The final moments of glory.

Ari watched as the lances passed each other and the two combatants pressed their final claims on victory.

[House of Judah]

Magnus Henry VS Ari ben Yitzchak
1: Miss/Body (1)
2: Body (1)/Miss
3: Body (1)/Body (1)
4: Body (1)/Helm (2)
5: Miss/Miss
3-4, Ari ben Yitzchak

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ARI BEN YITZCHAK IS JOUST GRAND CHAMPION

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