Missing the War [Eridanus]

[Nira'lia]

"I don't know," she said in reply. Nira'lia kept her position, remembering it. It was pretty basic and she was confident she'd recall it when needed. She had no weapon in her other hand but she knew that didn't mean it would have no purpose. Not using one's hand would just be a complete waste, though she had no idea what she could do with it. Venturing a guess, she said, "Is it supposed to assist in... something? Am I supposed to use it to defend myself, or maybe even use it literally for, uh, unarmed combat when possible?" She frowned, realizing that if that was the case, she had a huge problem before her. "I can't, uhm... I can't touch people," she admitted. Now that she thought about it, her Konti gift was probably going to be the death of her someday. "I guess I can wear gloves or something, but that really defeats the purpose since I'd only really need self-defence if someone jumps on me out of the blue." 'Maybe I can poke them once before anything else,' she thought as she grinned to herself. Nira'lia was actually making mental jokes about her own predicament. Nira'lia realized she had been rambling. She looked back at Eridanus, urging him to continue. "Okay, anyway, what's my other hand supposed to do?"

[Eridanus]

Eridanus rolled his eyes briefly, though he was sure that the konti would not have noticed due to her distracted state.

"Focus!" He grinned. "You could always wear a glove, you know. The weather's cool enough to not reduce you into a sweltering puddle. It's not like we live in the desert or anything." Shrugging, he added, "Or bring a pair with you around if you like to keep your hands exposed. It's up to you."

"Okay, for today we'll just assume that you're going to fight either unarmed people or those wielding small weapons. If you fight someone with an axe, rapier, long sword or spear, I'd suggest turning the other direction and running as fast as you can."

He cleared his throat, then used his hands to physically show her the difference in reach for all those weapons.

"Those weapons would gut you before you have a chance. However, against small arms - such as daggers or short swords comparable to your Suvai, or unarmed, you have a chance."

The vantha positioned himself before his student, punching forward with one hand, then using his other hand to guide her other unarmed hand to block his punch.

"This is what you want it for. To parry or block distractions so that you free up your dagger-hand, which can be used to go for the kill. Of course there are other methods you can play with the dagger-hand, but I'll go through that later. Any questions so far?"

[Nira'lia]

"...Uh, okay," she replied meekly. His explanation about what she should do for bigger weapons caused her uneasiness, of course. Run away from weapons with greater reach because those would gut her before she even had the chance. That was a pleasant thought. Nira'lia focused on how he guided her hand, putting the action to memory. So far, nothing he had taught her was much too complicated, and she was thankful for that. Even as he continued to speak, Nira'lia repeated the action with an invisible opponent, mimicking what he had told her to do. The Konti shook her head in response to his question. "No, no questions so far... what's next?" Nira'lia looked at him with curiosity and a wide grin. She was eager to see what else he was going to show her this day. This was evident in her expression.

[Eridanus]

"Give me a moment," He said, as he put his palms over the Suvai. He understood the dangers of the weapons' inherent poison, and there was no need to risk himself in such a manner.

Bringing his focus inwards, he felt the astral resource swirling about his soul, tapping into the web of energy and drawing them out through his wrists. Being careful not to touch the weapon, he instead used his hands like a conductor in an orchestra to guide the shaping of the djed, the actual method being willed by his mind.

Making sure to cover every inch of the suvai with the unfinished shield, he began weaving instructions into the pattern to dull the edge of the weapon. By tasking the shield against the Suvai itself, he essentially turned the weapon into a blunt, harmless object that could be used for practice.

Drawing his longsword from its sheath, he repeated the shielding process with it, then carefully tapping the two weapons together when it was done. As expected, there was no ringing of metal but instead the muffled thud of blunt objects striking each other, and no sparks were emitted.

"Good, now we can practice without worry."

"I will be an unarmed opponent first," He declared, putting down his shielded longsword for the time being. "When I strike you like this -" He gestured with a slow punch so that the konti could follow him, "you have a variety of options to take."

"You could dodge by repositioning yourself, use your off-hand to redirect my punch for a follow-up with the dagger, or by using your dagger to counter my hand. It all depends if you want to pursue a more defensive or offensive option."

Helping to guide the konti through the various forms as he explained, he continued, "Using your off-hand to block would be the more offensive option, since you gain access to an edged weapon to attack. However, your defence might be compromised depending on the effectiveness of your unarmed block. The more defensive option would be to reply the punch with a swipe from your dagger. Weaponry always trumps unarmed, so it is likely that the opponent will withdraw from that attack or risk serious injury. This will limit your offensive options, for most likely the enemy will dodge or retreat, and even if you get an opening you have to attack with your off-hand."

After he was done explaining and physically guiding her through the various forms, he clasped his hands behind his back and said, "Practice the forms I showed you until you're comfortable with them. Combat is all about muscle memory."

[Nira'lia]

"Hm," said Nira'lia with interest as she ran her hand against one of the blades on her suvai. They were blunt and safe. She couldn't tell what he had done, but she found it fascinating – and she also felt more comfortable wielding it now. Nira'lia knew that the chances of wounding him were very low, but it was always better to be safe. She listened to his words with much focus, reflecting on them. Nira'lia proceeded to practice the forms he had just taught her. They were awkward attempts at first as she tried to recall the actions. Nira'lia decided that she liked the suvai a lot – it wasn't very heavy and wasn't a much of a strain to her arm. She found that it wasn't difficult at all to swing it around, and that wielding it felt natural. Grinning, she slowly grew more accustomed to the task he had given her. It took a couple of tries until her attempts went from awkward to fairly acceptable, and while her actions were still far from perfect, she was pleased with herself. "I think I like being defensive much more..." she mused as she continued to moved the suvai around. Then and there, she decided that the more defensive form would most likely be more effective for her. She knew that she didn't have much strength, and if she used her off-hand to block, there was a huge chance she'd only get overpowered by most people. Still, she decided to practice all the forms, just in case. After a few minutes, she was starting to feel tired. She frowned to herself – she had not been practicing for so long. She really needed to do something about her frailty. Nira'lia put the weapon to her side to rest for a while. At the same time, she glanced at Eridanus. "Did I do okay? Did I get them right?"

[Eridanus]

"Yes, that seems about right," Eridanus mumbled, circling the konti while intensely scrutinizing her every form, her every action. The slowdown in her actions was noticeable, possibly due to the lack of physical fitness, and he made a mental note to train her up in that.

"You need to maintain the consistency of your swings," He chided when she began to slow down too much. "I know your arm is burning, but do it too often and your body will behave as such. Always maintain strict discipline in your regimen."

Using his arms to raise her arm, he kept it there then motioned, "Keep at it. Try to maintain a consistent strength and speed in your swings. You'll suffer in the short-term but you'll thank me in the long-term."

As she continued practising, he commented, "There are two ways if you prefer the defensive option. Basic techniques. First is to do a simple swing at your opponent's attacking arm, and the second is to attempt to stab the attacking arm. The swinging is more effective since it covers more spaces, but leave you more vulnerable in the cooldown of the swing. The stabbing is more effective and has a lesser cooldown, but you need to be more precise with it."

As he lectured, he used his arms to guide the konti's movements as he demonstrated the swinging and stabbing a few times so that she understood the movements, then let go and gestured for her to continue on her own. He knew that she was beginning to get tired, but if one wanted to learn combat one needed to train the mind and body, and that was what he was doing now with her.

[Nira'lia]

She frowned bitterly but held back her complaints. Nira'lia wanted to put the weapon down and rest, but she also saw the sense behind what he was saying. So she forced herself to continue the task, all the way reminding herself that this was for the best. Nira'lia then tried to do both the swinging and stabbing actions. She envisioned a mental target before her, imagining that an opponent's arm was right there. The Konti found that he was right, that stabbing was much more difficult to be precise with me. '...Imagine then if this invisible arm was actually moving.' The Konti tried it a few more times. She had to remind herself to raise her arm once she realized that she was unconsciously lowering it again. At the same time, she wondered how often and how much she had to do this to actually get used to it. Since she knew she was utterly unknowledgeable at exercise regimens, she asked the Vantha, "So... uhm... I should do this every day or something?" The pain in her arms was stronger now. They throbbed with every swing of the weapon. The third time she had to remind herself to raise them, she was almost tempted to drop the suvai and plop down beside it. However, she forced herself to continue, and instead decided to say, in a rather childish tone, "This is enooough..."

[Eridanus]

"Practice when you can physically, and go through it mentally when you cannot do so. Visualization is as important as execution, for your mind must fully know what it is doing if you hope for your body to do the same."

Eridanus sighed, realizing that it was pointless to continue. She was a beginner after all, and not just in the use of that weapon. She was a beginner in combat, and in general fitness. He had expected to go through more than just this, but he realized that it would not be efficient to continue. Instead, he waved his hands, saying, "You can rest now if you wish. I give you this much leeway because I understand that you're a complete beginner in rigorous physical activities."

"So what are you going to do now?"

[Nira'lia]

As soon as he told her she could rest, Nira'lia plopped down on the ground just like she wanted. The Konti felt pathetic, and she now knew how out of shape she really was. Her body was so frail that she couldn't even handle swinging a weapon around. Truth be told, Nira'lia wanted the lesson to be over. She was tired. However, now that she was resting, the Konti glanced at the longsword that he had brought. Like her suvai, he had done something with it to blunt its edges. She had forgotten about that. "Wait, no, just for a few minutes!" she exclaimed. "I want to know how to parry against weapons, too... even if it's just a really quick demonstration, please?" Nira'lia grinned sheepishly. Seated on the ground, she took the liberty of resting for a few minutes. Her limbs, especially her wielding arm, were in pain... but she knew that wasn't going to go away any time soon. She cringed at the thought of how much more they would probably hurt the next day. When she decided she had abused as much resting time as she could, Nira'lia stood up again and grabbed her suvai. For good measure, she swung it around and winced at the strain. Nevertheless, she knew she had to tolerate it. Facing Eridanus, she said, "Last lesson for the day? I promise I won't whine anymore."

[Eridanus]

Eridanus grinned at his friend's last-minute suggestion. It seemed that there was hope for her after all. He did note that she took the moment to rest as much as she could, but he did not comment on that. There was no point on being overly hard on a newbie after all.

"Alright," He said, "But last one it is. We should not try to cram too much information in one go, yes?"

Moving back to pick up the longsword, he gestured for her to go into a stance with her suvai, and he began lecturing, "A short lesson regarding fighting an armed opponent. For this instance, we will assume a short weapon as well."

As he spoke, he move his hands up the sheath until he was holding the blade at the half-way point, essentially reducing the reach of his long sword to effectively simulate the shorter length of a short sword or dagger.

"Against such an opponent, the 'defensive style' against unarmed would be paramount. While it is theoretically possible to use your arm to intercept his wielding arm, it is not recommended at your level. Instead, use your blade arm to intercept any and all attacks from his dagger."

Attacking her in an exaggeratedly slow manner, he gave her the chance to practice what he spoke as he continued his lecture while proceeding with slow movements so that she may learn in both words and actions.

"If an opponent tries to attack you with an off-hand like this, shift yourself towards the direction of his blade arm and counter with your blade. That will damage him if he continues, and if he dodges and tries to reply with his blade he will need to reposition himself, giving you time to finish your swing and protect yourself with your blade."

"For normal blade-to-blade attacks and parries, try to move yourself towards his non-armed side so as to try to flank him. Let's try for a few bouts, yes?"