Timestamp: 15 th of Summer, 522 A.V.
This was just another of her many visits to Gracelin and The Komorebi Estuary, though this time Tazrae brought baked goods in trade. She had her machete sheathed on her backpack and she was dressed in her jungle leathers. Though it was hot, Taz had compromised with an off-white isuas tank top to keep her cool through what was coming.
Gracelin, who was tending the small garden outside her bungalow, grinned when she saw Tazrae and more importantly the basket of baked goods with her. “I know you can forage and hunt for what you want, but I figured baked goods would be a rarity and not unwelcomed.” The Innkeeper said, reaching up and offering the entire basket to Gracelin. The woman grinned in response, took the basket, and then drew Tazrae with it into a firm hug.
“Gods, it's good to see you. I heard what happened in town. That was bad business. I wish I could have been there.” She added, shaking her head. “It’s just too dangerous these days… even now… even here.” She whispered.
Tazrae pulled away and nodded. “Don’t worry about it. The Settlement handled it. You’d have been proud. And I’m confident it won’t always be like this.” She added, watching Gracelin lay the basket on her porch and turned to Taz. She offered her a smile, the smile of a friend, and it was returned.
“You’re overdue for a lesson…. let’s make that happen,” Gracelin added, grabbing her machete from the porch where she had a number of things at hand in case of emergency, and walked towards a huge bolder that Gracelin liked to use as a sort of Master’s circle for practicing. Tazrae followed her, shedding her pack and drawing her machete out to join Gracelin in the circle.
“What are we going to learn today?” Taz asked, slowly starting to run through the four-step footwork to warm up her body. “Parry? Thrust? Great powerful slashes that will bring down Velispar?” The Innkeeper joked, a smile playing across her face. The Innkeeper was already putting her feet through the paces, keeping her blade forward, the thrusting arm outstretched, her body protected behind it. She moved through each step, each motion, with practiced ease because she had been practicing them diligently, taking Gracelin’s teachings seriously despite the lightness of her words.
It was hot, and in the long isuas jungle pants and tall boots, Taz began to sweat. She kept moving even as Gracelin studied her thoughtfully and began to move through the exercises with her. The two women moved side-by-side, not facing off, not yet, going through the graceful motions of aligning their bodies motions with that of the machete, uniting them.
“I want to talk to you about tactics, first, I think.” She said. “Every weapon has a set of ethics and tactics that we can assign the weapon. Swords and Daggers have similar tactics just manipulated by the length of their blades, but machetes have a unique set all their own. The first one I want to give to you, Tazrae, is to run away. If the fight isn’t necessary, don’t have it. Run away. If you can avoid it, flee immediately, use your footwork ad your movements to get your body to safety. Remember, love, that when you are fighting an opponent or a group of opponents, you don’t actually want to trade blows. You want to maneuver around and past them and then cut off the threat on the other end. Eliminate it. Just expend as little energy as possible doing so.” Gracelin said, shifting into a new position, Tazrae moving with her.