Mosaic City, located along China's coast, is quite large city sometimes called the Crossroads Between Nations due to its diverse population. While it was once a large tourist spot, the city was placed under a blockade as the military appeared claiming there was a radiation leak. The true hazard, however, is much more sinister.
Whilst Zhou's maneuver had come from partway across the room, the elegant spinning of the princess was from a much closer position from all accounts, and he paid almost immediately for his dialogue, as Isolde lashed him across the back with the blunt rapier, causing him to tilt his head back in pain. With a few pained breaths, he began to slowly bare the smile once more upon his face, his pained expression almost fading in and instant. Upon her reaching his back after striking him, he spun about in place to fight her, both hands upon the grip of his foil, his feet dug into the flooring as he plunged the foil hard into the stomach of the maiden fair. After this however, he brought the bladeless weapon downwards after the jab, before using the weight of the original blow in a spinning semi-circular blow. Bringing the rounded tip of the foil down, his follow-up blow would strike her squarely upon the shoulder, as he brought his blade up to block, his eyes pupils constricting, his teeth bared in a smile, as he spoke out to her. "Your technique makes me question why you need knights, my dear!" There was a certain joy taken in this waltz of blades by Zhou, and it was truly evident, for whatever reason, the combat invigorated him to a point of ecstasy unparalleled. How beautiful the clashing of blades, the breaths of the combatants, they had formed a symphony of jubilant battle.
There was utter carelessness in their sparring, the thrill of blade against blade was all there was to it, how quickly their little match had devolved into something more spontaneous, more joyous than had been expected by either combatant. Bringing his blade up once more to block her initial strike upon one of his shoulders, he was powerless as her secondary hit lashed against his coat, stinging his skin. Holding the blade like a lance, Zhou charged headfirst at her with the blade trailing behind him, clutched tightly as if he was truly about to strike down some mighty foe like a knight from legend. Swinging upwards with the bladeless foil, he then spun about in place, attempting to lash her square across her chest. Exhilarating tension filled the air after his strike, as he ducked down low, extending one knee outwards, stamping it into the ground, as he brought the length of the foil against the back of her knees, moving behind her with his guard up. Before it had appeared as if he was merely attempting his hardest to impress her...if he wasn't now, then what would? Pulling the foil over his head whilst clutching it in both hands, he was readily prepared to strike her with another strong thrusting attack to be guided to her abdomen, as he spoke aloud, great jubilation in his voice. "You don't appear to need guards of any sort, with skills such as yours, sweet Isolde..." From the intonation placed upon the word sweet, one could definitely almost feel the joy dripping from his voice. Pure, unfiltered. There was no mistaking it.
Eyes widening in pure ecstasy that could not, no, would not fade, Zhou brought his blade up to knock aside her foil during her attempt to strike at his chest. Feeling the steel jab against his shoulder, he looked into her eyes with burning intensity, before she once more committed herself to an acrobatic act the likes of which he had not thought her capable of executing. Staring at her, teeth gritting in great exuberation, he charged headlong at her with his foil to his side, bringing forth a stabbing attack towards her, only to shift it so that the two were simply clashing blades. Staring into the eyes of the empress, his pupils constricted in abject excitement, he began to speak, breathing a bit heavily, his wiry strength pressing the metal of his foil with hers. "I think I like this side of you, my empress, quite a bit!" So hurried were his words, his breaths, before pushing closer to her, his foil grinding against her own. Pushing ever closer, trying to force her back, in his excitement, he pushed his head closer to her, kissing her once upon the lips before leaping back, clutching the foil once more like a lance. "Truth be told, I don't think I have felt so alive in years, my love..." The wild nature of his excitement seemed somewhat calmed, any pain from her attacks seemed to be numbed by the flow of adrenaline through his veins, as he took a few deep breaths, maintaining eye contact with her. "You're fast, m'lady...I'll definitely give you that!"
She felt his lips upon hers as they clashed swords moments ago. She could tell that he was feeling pure excitement during their battle. She never felt so much excitement until now. "It feels so good to have a waltz like this, my dearest." she responded in a gentle tone. She spun around in an elegant spin and slashed him across his chest and stabbed him on his knees. She gave him a quick kiss on his lips before twirling into the air once more and landed on the ground. It was certainly the most beautiful sparring match she had ever been to.
Eyes burning with utter delight at the joyous symphony of battle that was being played out by their instruments, the fencing foils they held within their very hands, Zhou swatted away the young princess's attempts to hinder his kneecaps, but took a strike to his chest as a consequence, feeling it tear into the fabric of his jacket like a whip. Stinging pain echoed throughout his nervous system with a delightful tingle, as he soon found himself locking lips with the dear princess once more. As soon as she began to flip backwards into the air, he made his charge, foil in both hands as to mimic a spear. Holding the weapon forwards whilst he moved at her, he made a quick dash to her side, striking her squarely across the back, before working his footing so that he had pivoted to her front, jabbing her twice within her abdomen, hopefully. Each precise slash, poke, every movement felt almost choreographed as part of a grand dance the two were acting out, without need for music, for rhythm, the sound of clashing swords was more than enough to highlight the moment. There was precious little need for words, for expressions, all of it was played out by body language, by the glory at the tip of their swords. Pressing the tip of his blade against her body, he locked eyes with her, apparently mesmerized but for a sheer second...through deep breaths, only with great effort was he capable of moving away from her, placing his hands upon the sword. Practice had taken but a few minutes, their battle...who knew how long it would last? One thing was certain. They had until the break of dawn, which was far from soon.
Pain seared across her chest and backside, but she ignored it. Although she did feel the sting that came from being hit in the abdomen and backside. She dashed forward and slashed at his backside and stabbed his chest twice. At least, three hits was better than two. She'll be expecting him to counter one of her blows, however. After her attacks had landed, she twirled into the air once again and landed on the opposite side. The flow of battle was almost like they were waltzing to nonexistent music.
Rocking to and fro like waves against the hull of a ship, the rhythm of battle had been a constant wave of his charges, her aerial maneuvers, his counters, her searing strikes...glorious, utterly glorious was what it was. Even grand things had to end, and with the night being so young, Zhou took it upon himself to end the dance the best way he apparently knew. Taking the brunt of her stabs, even the slash to his back, he rushed whilst she moved to flip into the air, and instead of allowing her a moment of respite, in lieu of granting her the moment to regain her footing, he spun about in place during his charge, bringing the full force of the side of his blade squarely into her stomach with enough force to knock any normal person to the ground...yet that wasn't enough. Pain wracked his body from her attempts, his eyes widened with pure adrenaline, as his body twitched, and he brought the full force of his strike against her chest, causing the pliable metal of the foil to bend...and then snap. With his weapon broken, he found himself stumbling, falling atop her as his rapier landed to the side. Breathing heavily, he pulled himself up, getting upon his hands to avoid laying on her, before looking into her eyes...between pain wracked breaths, he spoke down to her in an exhausted tone. "M-My apologies...m-m'lady...I...I suppose I lose, due to being disarmed..." There was a clear blush upon his cheeks, his eyes were locked with her's...and he spoke out once more. "I didn't...I didn't mean to hurt you...are you okay, Isolde?" Concern crept into his gaze, and though he was nearly out of breath, he did seem more worried about her, than the lacerations she had inflicted on him.
Both of the two seemed absolutely exhausted from the intense dance the had engaged in with their blades, as Zhou moved back from the princess a bit, staying seated on the ground for a moment, before kneeling before his princess. Gazing up at Isolde whilst showing her proper respect, he made eye contact with her once more, apparently embarrassed by not only snapping his fencing foil against her, but also having landed atop her, he began to speak in a worried, apologetic tone. "I-I am fine, m'lady...I am so dreadfully sorry, I didn't mean to..." Looking down at the ground whilst kneeling before Isolde, he kept one hand planted firmly against the flooring of the gymnasium, taking a deep, shuddering breath. Slowly rising from his kneeling stance, it was one of the first few times he appeared to actually have his carefree attitude driven away with concern over the woman he had pledged his undying loyalty to. Reaching out to her, he ran a hand through her hair, and spoke again. "Are you certain you're alright? I didn't mean to put so much force behind it, or...well, after." Moving close to her, he kissed her atop her head, before holding her close, hugging her gently to himself for a moment. Releasing her from his grasp shortly after, there was a certain degree of affection that crept through the situation.
Feeling the warmth of her lips upon his cheek, Zhou's apparent guilt had seemed to be alleviated by her kiss, though his body was indeed exhausted from the absolutely glorious sparring match beforehand. A slight smile crossed his lips, as he knelt down to look into his backpack, opening it up to apparently fine one of the items he had brought along to make the best of their time. After passing by the food he had packed for them both, he pulled forth a bottle of legal over the counter painkillers that had been purchased by his parents for headaches and the like. Alongside this was a bottle of water, which he used to help him down two of the pills. Pulling out a second bottle of water, he offered both to her, before laying out the contents of his backpack. After a few short breaths, he took a seat on the gym floor across from her, speaking out in a calm, slightly concerned tone, though Isolde seemed to be taking the pain just as well as he was. "I cannot lie, darling...your elegance in battle is second only to your grace in public." Ensuring that both of them had a comfortable seat upon one of the aging mats that had been laid about the gym prior to the infestation of the area by shadows, he looked down at the food, water, and cheap painkillers before him. "After training with my old tutor, after a few sparring session I learned to appreciate these...I do not take them often, but they help...please, so that we can talk without you feeling pain."
Gradually, Zhou seemed to fully recover his breath, the pain numbing over time. Lash after lash had struck his frame, but now that he and Isolde had a moment to rest, to talk, he felt much better, his apparent guilt being alleviated by her lessened pain. "My formal training went on for about three years, and when the blockade was enacted, it was cut short...I just began to implement bits and pieces of what I observed into what was missing." Leaning forwards a bit, he smiled as he pulled his own water bottle closer, drinking down a bit more before sealing it right back up. The darkness of the gymnasium was not as black as pitch, but the darkness certainly was prevalent...it was comforting, in a way. With his tone being utterly gentle, calm, now that he had settled down a bit, he spoke to Isolde. "I would ask the same of you...but I believe it would ruin the mystique behind your style, my sweet. I truly do find it something beautiful to behold, much like yourself." With a smile, he turned his head to face her, placing a hand upon her own. She truly did seem to evoke a sense of happiness from him, so it would seem, and though the pain had not faded entirely, there was a definite feeling of ease that filled the gym.
For but a moment Zhou seemed a bit taken aback by the sudden nature of her declaration that the Imperial Family had an anthem of it's own...somewhat out of the blue as it was, he then heard her ask of him what his family would do should they find out about the two's relationship, thus, a whole can of worms was opened. Zhou seemingly lost himself in thought but for a moment, before speaking to her in a calm, gentle voice. "My family is very...how do you say...well, they're xenophobic to an absurd degree, Isolde." Facing her with the same smirk on his face that he had bore many a time, he prepared himself to explain to her the exact circumstances he was speaking of..."Regardless of your bloodline, they would rather seek to railroad me into a marriage with one from my own ethnic background...to better explain it I don't care what they think.." A giggle managed to escape his lips, as he then began to speak to her on the same subject, curiosity permeating his voice. "And what of yours? I'm not exactly royalty, despite being given knighthood, do you not fear that they would not consider me a true knight? On top of that, I do not think your family would approve of my less than noble birth."
The conversation between the two after the prolonged bout of sparring seemed rather calming for both of the two young souls whom were now resting within the darkness of the gym, his eyes meeting her's beneath the pale purple light of the strange sky of the outer circle. Although the lad was apparently entranced by the look in his young love's eyes, he then spoke to her in a soft tone, clutching her hand in his own. "My father was the son of an Englishman and a secretary employed in Hong-Kong. Whilst my mother was from Manchuria, suffice it to say romance is not really something prevalent throughout my family history, as they married out of tradition after...well." With a slight smile, he scratched the back of his head, it just didn't seem to be something that was fit for polite conversation. Breaking eye contact from her, he moved to be facing her front, rather than sitting beside her, as he leaned forwards a way. "And as for the opinion of your fellow knights, just like the opinions of my parents...they can rot for all I care, if you do not mind my simplistic dialogue." Whilst he had also leaned towards her, he seemed to have a smile that had widened by a significant margin, and a satisfied little giggle left his lips..."I needn't ask how yours had met...yet I'll remember how we did, my dear, sweet, Isolde."
Whilst looking into the eyes of the one believed to be his beloved, Zhou spoke with a somewhat tenuously cautious tone..."I've no siblings, nofamily other than my mother and father. My father is a bastard child, and thus the English members of his extended family treat him somewhat as a pariah, whereas my mother's parents simply passed away." The curiosity of the young empress did indeed bring upon him a certain sense that made it appear as if he was quite flattered by her interest in him...it was an honor, truly. Sitting across from her, he extended one hand out to grab a bottle of water to pull it closer to himself, gazing deeply into her eyes...for but a moment, he looked as if he wanted to say something, something held back within the bottom of his gullet. Merely he smiled, apparently stowing it away as he spoke unto her a similar question..."You've spoken of your family in the past, but...tell me of your brother, the one you once said was responsible for you learning how to fence. He must have been an excellent teacher to show you how to move as you do."
There was a certain degree of honesty that came from Isolde's words that seemed to resonate with Zhou, there was always a bit of assurance that came with the fact of knowing that one could relay information easily to him. Especially the princess he had been sworn to, being a confidant was something that people would assume would come with the job description. Whilst keeping firmly planted before her, he smiled, gripping her hands in his own, interlacing his fingers with her's, as he once more gently replied to her. "You ask that, m'lady, knowing fully well that I would not miss it for the world, even if I was not accepted by your family or knights...being there is the least I can do for you, since you swooped into my life and livened everything up by a wide margin." Smiling with his eyes closed, Zhou giggled slightly before slowly opening them, looking into her eyes calmly, before he pushed forward, kissing Isolde upon the lips in a sudden movement, locking lips, as well as his arms around her, in a passionate embrace akin to the very same one they had engaged in on the day that Isolde had shared her affections with him. Only with the release of his lips from her's, did he open his eyes again, looking down at her with a joyous expression. "You appeared so suddenly into my life, and in the brief while that I have known you, m'lady, you have made it many times more tolerable...your tutelage, your grace, your company...all of it I cherish."
Isolde's question seemed almost foreign to Zhou as he sat with her in the dark, looking at her with a calm expression that displayed his curiosity at her question. "I've never really attempted to dance, you know." Scratching the back of his head, he looked down at her, standing up whilst extending out his hand to lift her up off of the ground. "The closest to a dance that I've participated in was the one we just undertook...but I am more than willing to learn from you, Isolde." With a grin on his face, he stood within the darkness, fully prepared to undertake another new venture, though it would likely be one much more embarrassing than the breaking of his sword from earlier. The pain pills seemed to have worked their magic, and the night was all theirs, even within the confines of the lonely gym in the outer circle...it had been a wonder no shadows had been drawn to them, but there was a sneaking suspicion that neither of them cared, or would tolerate an intrusion on the shadow's behalf.