Completed [The Archery Ranges]Back to the basics(Kovac)

[Lavira]

The woman gave a brief nod, glancing towards the one that had laughed briefly after Kovac had reprimanded him, then took a new arrow and nocked it once more. She did not lift the bow yet, however, only held it as she concentrated on the center of the target.

Check your stance.

She measured herself and found her angle far too tilted. Vira reset her feet to shoulder width and continued down the mental checklist.

Arrow nocked.
Bow hand set.
Raise and draw.

She raised the bow again, but still drew only after she was up, aiming as she steadied the weapon before her. To her, the target was perpetually slightly off to the right. Tried to center it better by turning her head further to the right so that her left eye was more able to look straight than slightly more to the center of her face. In the end, it was constant adjustments in her day to day routine to maintain accuracy.

Finally comfortable enough with the position, she held her breath and calmed her heart to keep her fingers from trembling. The teen blinked once after this, opened her eyes, and released the string.

The arrow flew from its nocked state, arching across the course, and striking the target. Vira let out the breath as the string stopped vibrating, the sound shaky to her thundering ears as she stared at where the shot had hit. One crimson line to the right of the center. It wasn't a bad shot, considering her handicap, but not perfect either. But to the teen, seeing at least that level of accuracy was a shock. She hadn't shot a bow since the accident, her own fear of looking like a fool in front of so many others who could see well and shoot better preventing her from trying again. And that was three years ago.

"W-wow. I...I didn't think I'd actually hit it."

[Kovac]

The girl lined up again, raised the weapon and began her calculations. Her head tilted and twisted, Kovac allowing her the time to make the adjustments and gaugings she needed to compensate for her eye. Certainly, it was something she had to learn with many tasks, she just needed to apply it to shooting as well. He just hoped, for her sake, that she at least hit the target. Another total miss would demoralize her for sure, and give those around more fodder to laugh at. Kovac could not take them all on.

When Vira finally released the string, the arrow flew true and when it thunked into the target, there was silence. Kovac stared at the missile jutting from the target. No, it was not a perfect shot, perfect shots were rare. For a one-eyed girl who only shot a few times as a Yasi, it was an excellent mark. The Avora shot a glance at the other archer, the scoffer, but the man had nothing to say, and went about his business. The hit could have been a fluke, but it proved the young woman could do it.

"Great shot Vira!" Kovac encouraged. "Did you begin to see how to compensate? With some practice, and tweaking out the rest of your technique, you could do pretty well, I'd say."

[Lavira]

Laughing, the teen nodded a little. "I think so. I see things more to the right anyways; I'm not sure why that is since I can't see from that side anymore. I'm always having to turn to see past the shadow of that side. But doing that doesn't really do the trick here, does it?" She straightened her stance and considered the arrow, recounting verbally what she'd done, if only for her own sake.

"I checked my stance; feet shoulder width apart and parallel to the target. I nocked the arrow; nock resting over the string, fingers lightly grasping the fletching. I drew, string taut, just off the cheek. I aimed; head more to the right, tilting down...target centered, string released." Her minds eye imagining the loose of the arrow and thwock of a connected target.

"I don't know that I'd do that well, but it won't hurt to practice. If nothing else, it'll help with some simple discipline." She'd never really be able to compete with the Endal archers or even terrestrial hunters in the city, but bow hunting and archery were extremely different, in the end. "Thank you, Kovac."

[Kovac]

Kovac easily shrugged off Lavira's expression of gratitude, the mongrel never good at accepting thanksgiving. "You are right, you are never going to be shooting hare off the back of an eagle or anything like that. Your thing is birds," he tilted his head towards the entrances to Wind Reach proper, where her harrier had headed, "but if you just want to shoot to relax, we can get you there." His gaze avoided the girl's clouded, sightless orb, focusing on her healthy eye, its golden green bright and vibrant enough to compensate for its dead twin. The young woman was attractive, in spite of the defect, her enthusiasm for the archer's trade engaging Kovac even further.

"Look, lets try a few more, and see what we can do. You did well with the placement of your feet, but lets look at the rest of your stance. Take the bow, without an arrow, and draw, then hold that stance." Even though Kovac's recurve bow had a heavy, stiff pull, Lavira handled it well, obviously possessing the physical strength to shoot. She had already started to overcome the awkward sighting issue, which she would hone with time, as she certainly must have learned to adjust for about any task she performed on a daily basis. For Kovac, it was a challenge, to help Lavira. It would also shut up the snotty Inartans that smirked at them as they worked.

[Lavira]

Her strength was unquestionable. The young woman had to maintain her bodies agility and physical strength combined in order to keep up in the aeries. If she wavered in practice even a little, she'd never manage the chores of her job. Wind Eagles could be exceptionally stubborn from time to time, afterall, which meant manually moving their lazy bums from time to time, along with her regular work.

Vira took up the bow once more and took the string between thumb, index, and middle finger mimicking the placement of an arrow that would naturally have been there. Dry draws were extremely rare because it put unnatural stress on the string which could break it; but Vira wasn't going to argue too much now, considering Kovac was willing to help her period. With digits set, she raised the bow and drew. Without the arrow, it was a little more awkward, but not by much. The same as before, she drew the string to as close to the place it would naturally fall with an arrow in place, just off the cheek (her ring finger used for reference this time), and held it.

This was the hard part. With her breath held, she had to move her focus off of her aim and into stabalizing her grip in order for study. Without the quick release of a shoot, it made her arm muscles tremble noticably with the force exerted to keep the bow in place and string held. Beyond that, however, he would see her bow-arm elbow was not turned properly, leaving her arm unsecure for a proper shoot. Second, her back elbow wasn't high enough, the point even with her shoulder instead of just above. Furthermore, the bow-aim was pointed a little too far to the right, but that had more to do with her visual detriment than her stance.

[Kovac]

It was an exercise Kovac often put a new student through, allowing the archery instructor to ascertain several things. First, he could examine the posture and stance of the shooter. Second, he could get a feel, literally, for the condition of the muscles required to shoot. Thirdly, it tested the students stamina. Any pleasure derived from tactile contact with a female student was purely coincidental.

Kovac saw a questioning flicker in Lavira's bright eye, but she held her peace. The mixed-blood then stepped close, the woman's drawn side first, and began his assessment. He saw the young woman correctly check the placement of her drawn hand with a finger, but her elbow was nearly parallel with the ground. Two fingers pressed gently underneath the joint to raise it to the optimum height. Her fingers were placed perhaps a little too deep into the nock, but that was understandable, given the task of holding the string in place for an extended period. The archer reached out and ran his hand along her forearm, running his fingers over the lines of taut muscles holding the string. They were firm and not overly thick, certainly used regularly. His hand continued to run along the upper arm, over the sharp ridge of her tricep, the notable oval of her bicep and then over the toned shoulder.

The pads of Kovac's fingers drifted over the ridged musculature of her upper back, impressed by their lean strength. The muscles along the top of her left shoulder from the neck out were bunched up a little too much, raising the left shoulder a bit. It was a common problem and easily fixed with some awareness. Kovac could then feel Lavira's tight muscles begin to quiver a bit, yet she did not slacken her hold, another impressive trait.

Finally running his hand down the extended arm, her elbow turned appropriately. Lastly, Kovac checked her grip. It was too tight, but otherwise well placed, even at a slight advantageous angle. The instructor stepped away ,folding his arms over his chest and nodding in approval.

"You may return the string to relaxed, gently." Kovac instructed. "You remember your stance well, Lavira, just a few minor flaws. You certainly are fit, no problem handling the heavier draw of the recurve composite." A slight curl at the corner of his mouth was the only indication that the Avora indeed approved of, and appreciated, her physical form. "Keeping the draw elbow up, the left shoulder down would be easy for you to overcome. Also, loosen the grip, just allow the grip to rest between your thumb and forefinger. Again, your biggest challenge would be compensating for the eye. That would just take practice to determine how much to adjust, and then add consideration for things like wind into it as well."

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[Lavira]

Unable to see him from that side as he made his adjustments, Vira had to stand patiently, gritting her teeth against the effort it was taking to maintain the hold. Her forehead had already broken out in a fine sheen of sweat, the tiny droplets yet to grow enough to run down the pleasant curves.

The touch of his hand beneath her elbow raised the joint a little further and almost instinctively, the shoulder relaxed some, the muscles loosening too ease the strain of the elevated arm while it held the dry-shot bow. She tried not to quiver a little when she felt his fingers run across her bare arms and then the back of the vinati that closed around her neck and upper back. It was a faint shudder, a reflex of the tickle she felt from the touch. At least she didn't giggle!

And then, it was over. The young woman loosened her shoulders slowly, the bow descending and the string carefully relaxed as she released a long, slow breath. Holding the bow in right hand, Vira reached across her right shoulder with left hand and rubbed at the top of her shoulder and side of neck, kneading the tightness slowly out. She listened to the advice that was provided, nodding slightly as she ingrained it into memory and speaking it aloud to make certain she understood it properly.

"Elbow up, shoulder down, lighter grip. Thank you for the advice. May I try another shot?" She asked, keeping the bow perpendicular to her right thigh and continuing the firm knead of three fingers through the shoulder and upper arm muscles as she stared at him with that unnerving, hawk-like stare.

[Kovac]

Vira did not complain about the test Kovac made her complete, simply choosing to rub out the strained muscles. The Avora took note of that. He had heard enough whining from students to notice when one endured the examination stoicly. If she approached her other vocations as seriously as she pursued this simple lesson in archery, she may very well earn her way up the caste ladder. The Chiet too recited the advice that the instructor had offered, ensuring him that she did indeed listen to what he said.

Lavira's request to take another shot was met with a firm nod. "Yes, take a few, work on incorporating what we talked about with your work to zero in your aim with your good eye." Kovac had lost interest in the other shooters at the range, or their opinion of the half-blind woman and her half-vanthan teacher. Lavira had shown a spark of interest in learning to shoot, more so than some of Kovac's own archery students. It was a pleasure to help her. It made her all the more interesting to him as well.

Stepping back, Kovac made sure Lavira had several arrows, then folded his arms across his chest and watched quietly as the woman readied to shoot again.

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[Lavira]

Vira set the arrows on the ground, taking only one and closing her eye as she went over in her head what he'd suggested. Checking her stance foremost, the woman steadied her balance on both feet, resuming the straight stance she'd begun in originally. This was followed with placing the arrow nock against the bowstring, her index finger over and her middle and ring beneath, each curled slightly to point away from the bow. The pinky was left to curl alone like the lonely little piggy that it was.

Once the arrow was nocked, she set her opposite hand in the same she had the first two times, her precision more on instinct than on practice. It at least let the arrow line up evenly against the bow as the shaft rest atop her pointed index finger. Steadied, the woman raised the bow smoothly. Her arm locked into position and she reminded herself to lower the non-draw shoulder to keep from tightening up when she drew. Vira forgot, however, to keep her elbow turned out on the bowside as she drew the string.

Her hand stopped beside her cheek and head began its evaluation along the sight, trying to pinpoint the angle she'd need to shoot true. It took a moment more than it should as Vira went over in her head what she had been told to adjust. Her mind checked the elbow, raising it slightly passed her shoulder to keep her aim even. Lighter grip, she relaxed her hand on the string a little, fingers easing but not releasing. Drawing a breath then, something she would normally have done on the draw, and steadied her hand. The aim was still off and she shifted the bow ever so slightly so that the arrow was pointed just a tick to the left of the target.

Vira felt the muscles in her back tighten a heartbeat before she released the string, following the waver of the arrow until it thudded with the target at the end of the gallery. Tipping the bow forward until it was once more perpendicular to the womans body, she slowly lowered it afterwards and assessed the shot mentally, trying to see what she might have missed in the shoot and even glancing to Kovac for his own input. The mind had a way of tricking itself sometimes and convincing the consciousness that it was right when in reality it was wrong.

The arrow, meanwhile, had fallen still a hair or two to the right of the center of the target. A good shot, but still not perfect.

[Kovac]

Lavira was meticulous as she prepared to shoot again, Kovac almost seeing visibly as she went down a mental checklist. fingers, shoulder, elbow, feet all shifted and adjusted as she readied herself. The woman had to tilt her head at an odd angle to line up her eye with the arrow, but she seemed to be getting used to it, and the instructor saw the tip of the arrow waver as she compensated for the offset of her monocular vision.

The arrow was finally loosed, striking the target soundly. She had no problem drawing the stiff bow to its full pull. She followed through, not rushing to lower the bow to see her shot. Kovac lifted a hand lifted to run through his short, dark hair as he examined the target. No, it was not perfect. If Vira had made a perfect shot at her skill level, it would have been a fluke. But this shot was close to it, even more so than her first. She was either very lucky, or gifted.

The young woman's gaze darted to Kovac, obviously seeking approval and feedback. He nodded and stepped up next to her. "The only thing to remember is, again, that left elbow, turn it out a bit, and don't lock it. But an excellent shot, Vira, I am impressed, and that is not easy to do." He offered with a small grin. "Why didn't we see this when we had you as a Yasi?" Kovac teased.

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