Lady Leigh brandished her broadsword, ready to do battle with the interloper.

The two women stared at each other across the small clearing in the forest

Clad in her battle gear, Leigh faced an opponent similarly kitted out, ready for deadly combat.

But Leigh, a trained hypnotist, had a weapon her opponent did not.

Soft words came to her easily. "You seem unsure," she said, her tone lightly mocking. "You would do well to put your weapon down and surrender." Her smirk added to the effect, she knew. "You have no chance, and you know well that I am in the right."

Knight Fatin of the Jedi Order kept one hand on her lightsaber, though it was still at her side.

She stared at the dark-cloaked Sith across the starship control room.

"You seem unsure," the pale warrior said in mocking tone. "You would do well to put your weapon down and surrender."

It was hard to resist those words, even if Leigh's aggressive stance provoked more than pacified. It was tempting to give in without violence, to just go with the flow and let the dark side win.

Fatin raised and activated her lightsaber in response. "Not today."

She charged.

Leigh received her opponent's charge and raised her weapon just in time to parry the downward stroke that surely would have removed her head.

Metal clashed against metal and sparks rained down on the green grass. Leigh gave a step of ground and assessed her opponent's technique, cutting in with a low riposte less intended to do harm (though if it claimed her the victory so soon, it would hardly be unwelcome) than it was to buy her space and breathing room. True to expectations, her dusky-skinned opponent slipped out of the way, moving quickly despite her armour.

Leigh moved like she was going to retreat but instead shifted her weight and motion to closed the space, and once more their weapons connected.

Fatin used her mastery of The Force to try push her opponent off balance after their lightsabers connected for the second time. She could feel the heat of the red-bladed Sith weapon as it tried to overcome her own blue beam.

The Sith resisted, of course, but it took some of her energy and concentration giving Fatin a chance to spin away.

The confined control room was no place for a real battle, but this was where they met. At least all the gear was to the outsides of the room, unlike other similar spaces.

Fatin launched into a renewed attack, trying to keep her opponent on the back foot, remaining calm and focused. She had to win.

The hollow clunk of two solid, three-foot-long cardboard tubes rang through the community centre gymnasium. Two women were swinging them at each other as if their lives depended on it.

Two men, seated at the edge of the room, watched them.

The tall man in the grey suit turned to the stocky man in the dark robes. "Which one was yours, again?"

The sorcerer laughed. "Mine is the larger one, while yours is the darker."

"Of course."

They continued spectating in silence as the two women swung at each other, their weapons barely missing one another.

"You know, Varius, you could just admit that I'm the better controller and leave it at that."

"Please, Sterling, do you think your voice will work on me?"

"Hadn't expected it to, especially since your magic did nothing to me." The supervillain shrugged. "Still, worth a shot."

Varius good-naturedly rolled his eyes. "Have neither of them landed a blow?"

"Mind control can't make them good fencers."

"You speak truth."

Sterling smiled slightly. "Was it truly necessary to have them fight in their underwear?"

Varius shrugs. "We could have had them in the nude, I suppose."

"Maybe later."

The fight continued before them, with each combatant gaining and then losing the upper hand.

"After this, shall we turn them into wrestlers?"

Sterling laughed. "It's an idea worth considering. Have we decided the stakes we're playing for yet?"

It was the sorcerer's turn to shrug. "The honour of the ladies before us?"

"If they consent, sure." Sterling looked at the two women repeatedly thwacking their cardboard implements at one another. "I'll happily take either or both of them home with me."

"As would I." Varius looked around. "I am not the conqueror here, and so I shall play by the laws binding me to this world, and I will let them choose if I'm to take them or not."

Sterling shrugged. "Judging by how easily they took to your magic and my voice, I don't think you'll have too hard a time convincing them to subject themselves further."

"We shall see."

Fatin slipped and dropped to a seated position under Leigh's continued assault, but was able to keep Leigh from striking her directly. Sterling looked at his opponent. "Shall we call that one for you, gather our proxies, and start again?"

Varius nodded, rising from his chair. "Best of five falls?"

"That sounds eminently reasonable."

Varius lifted his hand in an almost casual gesture and the two women froze in place, ready for new instruction. "May the best controller win."