[Antinous Training Grounds] Practice Makes..Something

by **Orion Michaels** on October 24th, 2013, 2:48 am

12th Day of Fall, 513 AV
Antinous Training Grounds
10th Bell

Orion was determined to figure out the secrets behind the bow, because to this point those secrets has completely eluded him. It was frustrating, and like the battle with his mount, it held him hostage in his position as a squire. Dinah wanted him to have varied skill with several weapons before she recommended he begin his trials, and it felt like all he'd be doing for the rest of his life was training with these cursed weapons. The sword, the shield, the bow, and the lance. She considered all of them weapons requisite of a proper knight. She had no qualms with anyone learning something beyond those, but a well rounded knight was a knight who survived.

The squire flexed his bicep and then stretched out his arms and shoulders before grabbing an arrow from his quiver. He focused intently on the target which sat down the range. It was circular with alternating rings of color to denote the various scoring zones. The lovely red center had tantalized him from the start, but he'd never even managed to make contact with the largest and outermost white ring. Not even a bit of luck had smiled upon him to allow for that fated perfect shot. He'd pray that he was able to change that fortune, and try as he could to apply Dinah's lessons to his archery. Combined with his own experiences, he felt like he might just have the slightest shot, the tiniest chance.

The arrow was rough in his grasp; the squires weren't offered the highest quality of gear , but it was good enough to serve its purpose. He needed to be able to hit a target routinely. That was it for now. Orion stood at the firing line preparing himself mentally for his upcoming shot. All he needed to do was replicate the form Dinah had showed him. Looking down at his feet, Orion confirmed that neither of his feet were further up than the next. This would act as his base for his archery. It was simple, but it afforded no wiggle room, either. If he leaned too far forward or too far backwards it would throw off his shot entirely. If he were on uneven ground, he wouldn't stand a chance.

With his stance fully set and planted, he could now focus his attention entirely on the target which awaited him. Or at least he should have been able to do such. Dinah had stressed to him the importance of having a constant and fluid drawback motion. If he trained himself in the usage of a bow over and over by repeating the same technique again and again he would be better off for it. Even if he were tired, injured, or just lost in the heat of battle, the training would stick in his muscles, they would remember, and he'd be able to fight without thinking. With the arrow ready, Orion brought the bow up, drawing the string back slowly. When his sights were level the blue eyed man finished pulling the string back. All in all it was a somewhat fluid motion, even though it had a glaring error. His elbow stuck out to the side, which was a reoccurring problem for the former doctor. This flaw not only added a fair amount of unneeded stress to his arm, but it also threw off his aim to the right. A straight, compact drawback would keep him on target. The mistake he was making pulled the bow to the right, which only exacerbated the issues he was fighting through.

Still, Orion pushed on to try and settle his gaze on that target, that circular shaped beast which had evaded him and his every shot for so long. Lining up his target, Orion released the arrow careful not to let the string scrape his face again on the way by. He'd only needed that lesson once.

The bow launched the arrow forth on a trajectory which was set by his form long before he'd even released the string. The projectile forcefully sliced through the air, but Orion could tell from the start that he had missed again. The tip of the arrow impacted with the ground first, kicking up in the arrow as the momentum carried it on a continued path forward.

Low and to the right.

Naturally.

by **Orion Michaels** on October 24th, 2013, 3:22 am

Orion gritted his teeth as he tried to understand what he was doing wrong. Everything had felt so right about what he'd done. He was confident that shot was going to hit, and yet there he was, lamenting another miss. It seemed that nothing had changed ever since he'd failed so miserably on the way out to the Mithryn Outpost. It had been so pathetic. It was shameful to even reflect on it, but he had no choice. He couldn't fire from horseback, he couldn't fire from standing. He couldn't firing with perfect form. None if seemed to matter.

He quickly procured another arrow, and went through his process in his mind. Were his feet correctly placed? Yes. He had an arrow, right? And he was drawing back correctly, wasn't he? If you counted the fact that he threw out his elbow like he was trying to take someone out. Or the truth that he simply pulled back too far for what he bow was designed. Wasting energy, that's all he did. Orion took that arrow, notched it, and violently pulled back on the string. He aimed a bit higher this time, and let go, sending the projectile screaming forward again, and again it failed to strike true.

Instead it spiraled through the air until it met the stone wall behind the targets, clanking harmlessly off the hard rock. The arrow reflected off that surface backward towards Orion, hitting the ground rolling back to where the previous shot had hit. He could have sworn that the arrow was mocking him.

The squire slowly lowered his bow, though he kept his hand up near where he'd released it. It was humiliating, or it would have been if anyone was even paying him any notice. The rest of the people around him were focused on their training, not the failures of a worthless squire.

Blue eyes drifted down to the bow, a frown spreading across his lips. A scowl grew on his face as he stared at the inanimate object, gripping it tightly as he struggle to find the source of his failures.

"This is clearly your fault," he declared to the bow, sighing as he did so. Blaming a weapon for his ineptitude? How the mighty had fallen.

by **Orion Michaels** on October 24th, 2013, 5:24 pm

Orion paused a moment to try and figure out just what he was doing wrong. Despite all his best efforts, nothing he did managed to change anything. Perhaps if he were firing into a mass of enemies he might actually have some sort of shot at actually hitting something. For now it seemed he would have to settle on showing the ground just who was in charge.

Taking an arrow from his quiver, Orion tried to recall what Dinah had corrected for him. "My feet are placed correctly," he muttered as he scuffed them against the ground. He was supposed to set his feet, which he was confident he had been doing correctly. From there he was supposed to pull back the string and take aim in one smooth motion, which he was also sure he'd been doing as it was meant. "So what am I doing wrong?"

Turning his attention to the others making use of the range, Orion watched as squires and knights alike practiced to hone their skills with their ranged weapons of choice. It was a rather curious thing he noticed. As he observed each individual taking their shots, it was clear that no one had exactly the same form, each with their own little twists or adjustments to general base techniques. Shot after shot was taken, but Orion found himself focusing more on those where were having continued success. There were some who were placing arrow after arrow in the center of the target; those were the ones who Orion was concerned with.

One knight in particular was of extra interest to the squire.

He wore the light armor of a mobile company. They patrolled the Bronze Woods in order to limit the danger to those who sought to traverse it. They were renounced for their ability to ride and their skill in survival. Their talent with ranged weaponry went a long way towards strengthening the latter. By the tight placement of arrows it was clear that he was no slouch at his chosen profession. It was almost intimidating, and it made Orion not want to ask him for his help. Instead, it seemed like it would be a much better idea to watch him practice and try and absorb his talents from afar.

It was quickly apparent that the man didn't use the square stance which Dinah had shown Orion, so the squire would have to ignore that much. His feet were so as one was in front of the other, but only by half a foot's length. When the man was ready to fire, he brought his weapon up, just as Orion had, but that's where the similarities ended. In one swift motion he brought the string back while breathing in. His elbow remained tucked against his side and his thumb caressed his cheek as he sat at the ready. A tick passed and then he released while exhaling simultaneously. His arrow streaked through the air and embedded itself in the midst of his other shots.

It was an amazing thing to watch someone so skilled in his task. Every shot was flawless. It wasn't lost on Orion that there was no pressure in their current situation, but the consistency was still nothing to ignore. The question Orion faced was how he could even begin to replicate that feat?

With his bow in his left hand and an arrow grasped firmly in his right, Orion went about getting his feet set properly. He slid them until they were just slightly more than shoulder width apart. Instead of them being even, however, Orion chose to cheat forward a bit by placing his left foot just ahead of his right. It was his stance after all, and it was his with which to discover what he needed. Next, he brought the arrow to the bow, the increasingly familiar tension of a drawn bowstring making itself known throughout his arm. After his arm was back in position, Orion caught himself making his usual error: his arm was jutting out to the side. He corrected by bringing his arm close in against his body, though the fluid shot was completely gone at this point. He inhaled, then exhaled, and finally let the arrow free.

Previous misses had left Orion dejected, but this was different. As the arrow clanked against the ground in front of Orion, a quiet determination came forth. He'd missed short this time, but it was on target otherwise. Shot after shot had been pulled to the side, but this one was right down the line. Maybe he could find some hope in this after all. Or maybe he could just hit a target for once. Orion would find that miracle just as acceptable of an event this day.

by **Orion Michaels** on October 24th, 2013, 6:24 pm

Orion repeated the motion several more times as he tried to figure out just what he needed to do, but shot after shot seemed to go awry. Too short, too high, just left, just right. Every time that he corrected one mistake, it seemed like he created another problem. It was frustrating, but he supposed it was all part of growing and learning how to properly do anything. He didn't learn to suture a cut in one try. He didn't learn how to let blood perfectly without repetition. His father had needed to help him set bones correctly.

So was did it eat at him so much that he'd never struck true with this petching bow?

Orion paced back and forth in front of the firing line as he took long, deep breaths to try and keep his temperament cool. There were eleven and twelve year old children succeeding at something a full grown man couldn't even begin to do. At least they hadn't mocked him to his face, though he wondered if some of the laughter and giggling he heard wasn't placed his way.

There were over a dozen arrows littering the ground in front of his target, and not a one sticking from it. He only had a couple arrows left. He was either sinking one of the bastards into that circle or he was exhausting the rest of the arrows and then burning the whole place down. Those were clearly the only options he had.

One of the projectiles rested in his hand, and Orion was almost scared to let it escape from his hold. It was likely to meet the same fate as the rest of them: lonely and broken on the ground, failing to fulfill the only purpose for existing.

Still, he was here for only one reason, so he'd finish it and call it good. He took the arrow and placed it gingerly against the bowstring, notching it in place. The string was wound tight, though he'd have it looked at after all the training he'd been doing. It felt like it had the right amount of give, though, so he pulled back a few inches as he brought the bow level with the target. He took a moment to align his sight with the center of that target and then continued with his draw. He remembered to keep his elbow in against his body, though it was tough with the square stance. One of the inherent problems with the square stance was how much of your body was perpendicular to the target. If almost invited the elbow issue he'd been having and limited the range of motion if you had the proper form.

With the string fully drawn, Orion made sure he was still on target, at least as far as he could tell, and released the arrow. The string returned to its original position, and by doing so propelled the sharp projectile along its path.

Thud.

The dull sound registered with Orion's senses, if a bit slowly. He'd been used to the sound of wood meeting stone. It was loud, annoying, and it grated at Orion's nerves each time the wood pattered against the floor.

But this. This was different. There was an arrow in the target.

Sure, it was barely in. It caught the outermost edge of the outermost ring on the very bottom of the target. If he'd been an inch lower it would have dove under the hay and slid across the ground, but none of that mattered. He had hit it.

Orion looked around, raising his bow above his head, waiting for someone to praise him or congratulate him. No one cared that a twenty six year old man had barely hit a circle with an arrow, of course. Not a soul paid him any mind, but it didn't matter. Orion knew what he'd done. After wasting dozens upon dozens of arrows and straining his arm and shoulder again and again, he'd finally made contact. Next step was hitting twice in a row, but he wasn't going to test his luck. Someone, something had smiled upon him, and he wasn't going to ruin this moment. With a grin on his lips, Orion Michaels, master of archery, moved down to go and collect his arrows and call it a day on the range.

by **Radiant** on October 25th, 2013, 5:11 am

Orion :

Notes :

My radiance is not bright enough?

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your grade, beam me a PM and we can work it out.

Skill	XP Earned
Weapon: Shortbow	+4 XP

Completed [Antinous Training Grounds] Practice Makes..Something