Completed The New and The Improving (training yard) (Skret)

[Banir Ironwood]

Mid afternoon, Winter 17th 512AV

The day had quickly grown overcast and the daylight that pierced through the trees of the Spires was scarce at best. The chilled air would discourage many from doing anything short of staying indoors. But Banir had other plans, he needed to become stronger and tougher. His skin and bones where thick and heavy, however this wouldn't protect him forever. That had been clear in with his bouts with Ximal and his technique. So here he was wearing his scarf around his head, protecting his damaged face from the world letting only his eyes view the world. He wore his simple cotton shirt in the cold air. His thick and heavy muscles clear in the dim light, the pale skin an odd contrast to the dull lighting. He had put his winter coat and heavy cold iron armour off to the side. Though he'd prefer to train with it on, it would only hinder his movements. Rolling his shoulders and neck he made sure to work all his muscles and stretch them out. Last thing he needed was to be crippled by something pathetic like a pulled muscle or worse. Standing upright he took a few long and deep breaths as his body fell forward.

A moment before impact his thick arms caught him and he brought his hands in closer until they made a triangle. Steadily he gave slow and even pumps of his arms. Moving his two hundred and twenty seven pounds up and down with some ease. After roughly twelve solid push ups he felt the strain in his arms and knew this was nothing if he sought to become stronger. Regardless of the strain and the growing pain of using his muscles he continued on. Pumping up and down making sure he worked the muscles in his arms. Going all the way till his nose touched the ground then back up until his elbows where almost locked in place. After a about twenty more he finally gave pause and collapsed, he had completed at least around thirty two. His arms where tired but he dared not stop. Bringing his stomach muscles to tighten he sat up while keeping his feet firmly planted on the ground. Reaching over he touched an elbow to his opposite knee before going down and repeating the process with his other elbow and knee. He continued this finding it the easiest of most workouts. Managing to go well into the fifties before he began to feel the pain of the work out. Even then he pressed on, in his mind just crying for one more, one more. He stopped after he lost count around sixty.

He was sweating now, his body forcing long and quick breaths from the large young man. Groaning he rolled his neck and walked over to a thick tree branch. Grabbing hold he began to lift up. Clearing the branch he lowered himself until his biceps where parallel with the ground. Then he brought himself back up again. Continuing this for a while more, finishing out at just past fourteen his body couldn't take that. The cold air stung his skin, but it felt good as it cooled the sweat forming on his chest, back, armpits and brow. Taking long, slow and even breaths he paused before going back into his cycle once more. Knowing that to get the best results he wanted he'd need to keep doing this for some time. The chimes went by and turned to a bell, after a bell and thirty chimes he paused. He felt eyes on him, an animal perhaps? A predator stalking around him? Quickly Banir lowered into his normal fighting stance, it had no grace or form, but it was a brawlers best stance. He scanned around looking for who the perpetrator may be. Wanting to know if he was under threat of attack or if someone had take an interest in his training. He let out his rough and graveled voice breaching past the scarf that covered his face. "Who's there? Show yourself and call, you friend or threat."

[Skret]

Skret had spent the night in a hole she found in a tree near the spire, the entrance was small enough that she had little worry of predators. She was far to nervous to ask to have a house built for her by the villagers, it was like an invisible wall was in front of the door that prevented her from going in. The little tree house she had found was rather comfortable, smaller places did give her feeling of safety. The major worry was that she didn't have a proper place for her belongings, her place for them now was a bush near the tree trunk. She hid them well but you never know what can happen in the night.

She peeked her head out of the opening of the trunk looking for any predators. Seeing the coast was clear she scurried down the tree trunk. Once she reached the bottom she transformed into her human form becoming as naked as the day she was born. The chilled wind suddenly hit her and she hastily put her clothes on to shield herself from the cold. The forest green robe her parents gave her was of a similar style to the monks of Nyka only the colour made it unauthentic. As much as she resented her parents and the monks she felt comfortable in the robe. The robe had many features she enjoyed. Not liking to draw attention to herself she usually hid her face under the hood frequently and it did a good job of concealing it. The colour also made the robe great for blending in with the foliage something that was of great help traversing the forest.

As much as she would like to learn new things her training was all she knew and now that she wasn't forced to do it, it would be much more enjoyable. She wondered if there was any place to train in the Spires, she would have to ask around something she wasn't fond of. She eventually found a Jemoura who pointed her in the right direction toward the training area. she meekly said her thanks and headed in the direction the Jemoura indicated. When she got to the training area she noticed the stocky man doing pushups. Skret noticed the cloth around the mans face and wondered what reason he could have to cover his face. She didn't know if this man was threat or not, and needed to find out before she could make her self know. She stepped carefully in his direction hiding behind trees when she could. She watched him do a few different strength training exercises before he suddenly stopped what he was doing and went into a fighting stance. She could tell by his lack of proper form that he was a brawler which made her wonder if he was some sort of thug. He called for her to state if she was friend or foe, she didn't know if it was a ploy to get her out in the open but she she knew would have to reveal herself.

she moved out from behind the tree she was concealing herself behind and said with hesitation in her voice
"um...friend..I am a friend"
she didn't look in his direction when she spoke and most of her face was still concealed in the shade of her cloak.

[Banir Ironwood]

Giving pause as he heard soft footsteps, his rage red eyes settled upon the short figure that wandered out from behind a tree. Examining her he could tell she had fighting experience, but was no fighter herself. She had no spirit, and lacked any ferocity. With that he moved back to simply standing on his feet, however Banir had a thuggish demeanor. An unintentional intimidation flowed off of him, thick arms with a light layer of sweat. His hulking form standing strong at a solid six feet and the minor outline of pectoral muscles where clear from how his shirt hung on him. Most would be able to tell that even if he couldn't fight very well, it'd take a lot of hits to put him down. The natural armour of his skin and bones made hitting him akin to that of hitting an actual rock. And the strength training here would only toughen his body all the more. With all this in mind he eyed the small figure, she seemed shy and he was able to understand. Letting out a sigh he made sure the scarf on his face was secured he nodded at her. He himself was a little unsure of how to proceed. Though as he searched for the his words he realized the silence was dragging on. Giving a light cough to clear his ruined throat he looked at her. "Why are you in the, training yard little one?"

Though Banir himself was thirty seven which was soon to be thirty eight, he looked and sounded as if he was just a man of nineteen years. A cold breeze blew and he felt a light shiver roll up his spine. It would be best to do his work and listen to her speak. If he stopped now he'd have gained nothing, so with that in mind he set himself on the ground. Starting with his rep of sit ups, letting his stomach muscles bring him up. Giving out a light grunt each time he brought his body up and an elbow to each knee. Wanting to make sure his guest wasn't put off he kept his eyes on her. Though she was small, a crossbow bolt would be rather unpleasant right now. And something he didn't want to do was get angry, lose his temper. And have someone hurt, he was trying to get over his rage. Though difficult and sometimes just not worth it, he still wanted to become a better person. To that end he did hope that the small person would talk with him. So far they hadn't attacked him just yet and that often was a positive sign. At least in his mind it was. His sit ups where finished and he moved onto doing the chin ups. Grasping the branch and doing his rep of fourteen, making sure to go slow and actually build his biceps and triceps.

[Skret]

Sket could see the man move out of his fighting stance but he still gave off a threatening aura to Skret. She caught a quick glimpse of his red eyes peeking from his red scarf and knew they were not the eyes of a typical human. She wasn't sure if she was simply imagining it of if he truly was some manner of beast. She knew it would be too rude to enquire about his lineage and the question might insult him. He did frighten her but that was still no excuse for rudeness. Skrets build wasn't very visible with her draping robes on but it was plain to see that the man was far stronger than her. This alone didn't intimidate, the idea that he might have fighting skills to back it up did.
After a moment of awkward silence the man asked why she was here and refereed to her as "little one". The title he gave her was usually used by older individuals but this man sounded as if he was in his late teens when he spoke. Sket felt in the way he spoke that he wasn't as threatening as she though but she was still on guard.
"..I am here to train....I assume your here to do the same?" skret said with just a touch more confidence than her previous answer.
despite declaring she was here to train she none the less was still frozen in place not able to start her exercises.

[Banir Ironwood]

As he reached his fourteenth chin up he paused as he listened to the young girls response. Giving a grunt and letting all two hundred and twenty seven pounds to the ground. The thud was solid and thick like someone had dropped a rock on the ground. Standing up right he groaned as he rolled his large shoulders. The young woman had spoken that she wanted to train, perhaps she wouldn't mind a spar then? Though he felt bad about facing someone so small and no doubt female. He knew that even a young woman could be a lethal bomb waiting to go off at the wrong moment. Sometimes he even thought they where all the more violent and terrible than men. She seemed frail but still might do her some good to fight a tougher opponent. He had no idea her actual ability to fight, but even if she did surpass him she'd have to be unusually strong in order to actually put a solid dent in him.

Taking a few chimes to get his breath and strength back he examined her his eyes softening. The red fading a little to let in a more calm white setting around his raging red. Once his breath was back he crossed his large thick arms over his chest. The small girl that stood quite a ways away hadn't made a single move. He wondered if perhaps she was too shy to ask anything or to try to converse? Whatever the reason he figured he may as well see if she'd like a spar. Taking a long breath he prepared his words in his head making sure he knew what he was going to say before it came out of his mouth. Last thing he wanted to do was screw up both an introduction and request at the same time. "My name is Banir, Ironwood I am sorry, if I was off putting or, rude before. My mind was set on, getting stronger. But I am wondering, if you are here to, train then perhaps, you'd like to spar with, me? Just friendly sparing, we can use mock, weapons if you want, and even take breaks, when you wish." He felt his request was reasonable. And he even silently hoped she'd accept his offer. Its not that he was a violent person, he just wanted to get stronger, tougher, faster. He wanted to improve upon himself, and sometimes it couldn't be done alone.

[Skret]

The way his body hit the ground made skret wince a little. The sound was as if he was made of solid rock, he couldn't possibly be human or kelvic this she was sure of it, but then what could he possibly be. She hadn't gotten very much experience with many other races just Humans, Kelvics and now Jemoura. She knew there were different races and didn't want to use the fact that he was different then her as a cause for alarm.
he introduced him self as Banir Ironwood, He apologised for any rudeness he may have caused and asked her if she would like to spar with him. He seemed sincere in his manner of speaking and she felt a little bad for assuming he was a threat.
"My name is Skret nice to meet you Banir, no need to apologize I was far more rude then you, I should have made myself know sooner and I would like to spar with you but I would like to do some stretching first."
She started by stretching her shoulders she pulled her left arm across her chest and held it in place with her right arm then alternated. she then bent her upper torso and stretched out her arms to touch her toes then reverted back to her upright position and started to twist her upper torso. she twisted back and forth in an up right position for a few sets and then stopped.
It wasn't a very thorough stretch but it would do.
"okay,I'm ready, no need to get me a weapon I don't use them" sket said as she walked to the man.
she wasn't sure she would be able to hurt him but she could maybe use his strength to her advantage. she wasn't very strong but her most of her method for fighting was about using peoples strength to her advantage. Athough if this man were especially skilled he would be able to easly counter her skills. she was now a foot away form the man and entered her fighing stance. her legs were perfectly parallel and her arms were out and ready for his move.

[Banir Ironwood]

Banir kept his stance for a moment taking his time and thinking on how best to approach the the situation. She had a stance and it was clear she was experienced in fighting. However he noticed a few open spots in her defense that he could exploit. Noticing the area behind her he saw a couple rocks and a few branches that had fallen from the trees. If he could push her there he could push the fight into his favor. Though this was a spar, the thing about brawling was you just needed to get an advantage and use it. Thinking for another moment he pieced together a plan. After fighting with his far more experienced friend and his little use of flux. He felt like someone not quite his speed would be a far more easy opponent. Though he wasn't about to charge headlong into a fight. That he learned a long while ago. However if no one made a move then this sparing match would be over quickly. Seeing how close she was he actually took a small and quick hop back. He knew how to move fast, his experiences running helped him with that. And once he had a good solid breath of air in his lungs he was ready. Suddenly putting his weight forward he lurched from his position performing a half jump. Twisting his body partially so his left leg was reeled back and his right arm was ready to pull out a swift punch.

Knowing she'd have little options other than to move back he'd be able to follow using his weight and momentum. As he had heard it said before, its not really how skilled you are at fighting. If you can out perform or force an opponent into a position you want them in, then the advantage is yours. And so as his bulk and muscle headed for the girl with a decent speed. Unless her small frame was able to push aside two hundred and twenty seven pounds of solid muscle and fighting force. Her options would be limited severely, her mobility might out do his, perhaps fighting skills even. But Banir knew what to do in a real fight, how to take the hits that could break bones. And give out the hits that could do similar damage.

[Skret]

Banir jumped away from her with decent speed and Skret was surprised he could move so fast with his bulky body. He charged at her sudden burst of speed and seemed to be reading a punch she acted almost on reflex using the crane style block to guide the blow away from her. she then altered her stance in way that twisted around Banir ending up behind him. She had mirrored her earlier position almost exactly she had moved Banir around the training area as if her were a bull and she was the matador . She had put on a good show but she didn't have much option but to deflect and dodge. she could feel the skin on his arm and it was unnaturally tough, her blows would do almost nothing to him. she knew she could have no way of winning this fight but she was still enjoying herself.
"you'll have to do better than that" she said with a smile
she seemed to have forgot that she was afraid of this man only moments earlier. This was the first time she had spared with some one where she was free to enjoy it. every other time her parents were there to tell her if her form was off, or if her punches lacked ferocity, it was nice to fight with out the pressure.

[Banir Ironwood]

Banir saw he was going to miss as she moved her arm into the path of his fist and began to redirect it. To which he used his kick pushing his body around, attempting to land his next hit. However she dodged out of the way and moved behind him. Her small frame proved to be much to her advantage as she weaved her way around him. She had broken his tactic, his mind was quick to try and get a new strategy going. He could try to funnel her towards the trees and use them to his advantage. And if he timed it right he could have her pinned against a tree, negate her dodging ability somewhat. If he could just do that then the upper hand would be his, then he could maybe actually use his experience over her skill. His thoughts where not even a full chime as his landing was complete, there was pain in his side as he landed. This didn't stop him though, the sudden kick he gave managed to shift his body. Landing on his side he was just as quick to push him up and launch himself at the girl. Each heavy foot fall leaving a clear trail of prints in his wake. He used his speed as much as he could to follow up with her dodging. Taking long slow breaths he kept his breathing steady and strong much as he had done when moving fast.

The idea was to force her back, use his intimidation as best as he could to try and get her back to the trees. They'll provide good cover for her but he can use them to keep her toes. He doubted she fought in surroundings like this, in smaller spaces. From her style she hadn't learned through being in fights, she had been taught. He had learned from his father, in a sick sense, catching the family anvil, being beaten for years, learning to fight back and take hits. That's how Banir had learned to fight. Everything just hindered on what she did, a gamble, but one with high odds of success to manage to put her into that prison of trees.

[Skret]

Banir didn't miss a beat and came rampaging toward her, she wanted to switch her tactics a bit and see if she could land a hit in. his method of fighting seemed primitive to Skret she hadn't fought many people who charged at their opponent with such ferocity except maybe her mother. She couldn't help her Rhino nature after all, as much as she resented her parents she still missed them. when Banir got to close she moved her self around him again, the charging tactic Banir used worked to her advantage as it would be much harder to preform this on a stationary target. Skret then jumped with her left leg using the momentum to lift her right leg into a kick. she aimed for the middle of his back gravitating towards the left so as not to hit his spine. she was hopeing to throw him of balance more than anything. Her arms were weak but she was fairly proud of the strength she had behind her kicks. Banir seemed like more of a rock then a man and she hoped she didn't injure her leg if she did indeed land this kick.