58th of Fall, 513 AV
Windmount Stables, Training Arena
8th Bell
Windmount Stables, Training Arena
8th Bell
”Alright, Orion. You’ve got a good enough grasp on riding that we can start working on showing you how to fight from horseback,” she said plainly. Dinah looked over at her squire from atop her own steed, a sword in one hand and her other hand holding the reins. ”I know it seems a bit much, but your mount is more than a way of transport. It’s your closest partner in combat, more so than your other knights.”
Orion nodded at his patron before glancing down at his mount. Together they would fight, and if that fight were to happen today, together they would die. He’d tried to fight, or fire his bow, rather, from horseback the previous season. Bandits were attacking a caravan and there he came to the rescue. Only not at all. Dinah and the rest of her knights made short work of the enemies while Orion futilely attempted to slay the sky. He was actually thankful for the training, but it was also rather annoying. He knew it was going to be quite the difficult experience.
The flat of the broadsword rested against his shoulder while the leather reins were looped in his grasp. He didn’t have terribly much practice with one handed riding, but there was nothing like adding the difficulty of swinging a weapon at the same time. Dinah had set before them a fairly straight forward test of prowess. Dummies were set up in two straight lines, staggered apart in their spacing. The distance was just enough that a horse could ride through unhindered.
”The object is to ride as hard as you can down this path and swing at the targets as you pass them. Faster is better, but only if you’re accurate. You want to fell each foe, rather than leaving them capable of fighting. I’ll show you what I mean and then you can give it a try. Or many tries. We’re here for you, after all.” Dinah flashed a smile before pulling down the visor on her helm. Turning her horse to face the course, the woman was off in a blur. Her control of her mount was impressive, but not half as impressive as the blade she wielded.
Orion had been on the receiving end of more than his fair share of strikes from the surprisingly powerful Dinah Lorene. The knight hardly wasted any effort; each strike was meant to lead to a killing blow. There was no flashiness, no glamor in the way she fought. The billions of bruises Orion had experienced would attest to that very fact.
Dinah flew past each target, her blade lashing out and hitting every foe in the head or neck as she passed the wooden enemies. It seemed like it only took a tick and then it was all over. Every single one had been struck well and she was on her way back. ”Your turn, Orion! Go!” She would see how well he did with just a viewing of her run. Her expectations were far from high, but the squire had surprised her before.
”What? No breakdown? Just go?”
”That’s what I said,” she replied, shouting as she raised her visor once more, a full smile countering the distraught squire.
Orion shook his head and closed his helmet, bringing the sword down to his side. His eyes peeked out from behind the slits in the visor, taking in the task before him. The forehand swings were going to be fairly simple; it was a natural motion. The backhand slashes were going to be something else altogether. He’d have to lean in his seat, and that was not something that he was terribly comfortable doing. Orion had fallen from his saddle more times than he was proud to admit, and this was just begging for it to happen again.
”Any particular reason you’re still sitting here, Orion?”
Dinah’s voice cut through his focus as he gave her a sideways glance. He was glad that the helmet was hiding the scowl on his face; he knew she’d give him a harder time otherwise. With a kick to the side of his mount he was off, hooves pounding against the dirt floor of the arena.
The squire bounced in the saddle, anticipation brewing as he neared the first target. Orion reared back with his broad sword and swung, a wild slash making contact with the arm of the dummy. It wasn’t a killing blow, and Dinah was sure to reprimand him, but at least he’d hit right?
He wouldn’t be able to say the same for the second target. Orion’s reflection on his first attack led him riding past the second target.
Shyke.
He pushed his feet down in his stirrups and urged the horse to go faster. His mind was torn all over, trying to focus on delievering a solid swing, making sure that swing actually connect, maintaining control of the mount, and not falling from the saddle. His leg muscles were tense and he was trying to make sure he didn’t pull on the reins and give the horse the wrong idea about what he was supposed to be doing.
Another slice, another glancing blow as his instability in the saddle left him bouncing as he tried to take down his foe. At least it was another hit. Taking no time to reflect on the individual attack, this time the squire was preparing himself for his next foe. Only he had no idea how to really go about it. He was controlling the mount with his left hand, so to reach over and swing with his right was a little confusing due to the horse’s head that he didn’t really wish to remove.
So he gave it a shot.
Orion flailed his arm across his body, trying to land a solid blow while leaning slightly on the left of saddle. Nearly swallowing his tongue as he bounced awkwardly, the flat of the sword smacked against the head of the target and Orion’s wrist simultaneously bent at an awkward angle. That caused him to release his grip on the weapon. Instantly he turned his head forward, refusing to risk the slightest chance of seeing Dinah until he’d finished his run.
With a rein in both hands, Orion leaned forward, squeezing his legs harder and brining the horse to a full gallop. Target after target whizzed by as he raced down the course. No glory awaited him at the end, however. Only reprimand.
Orion nodded at his patron before glancing down at his mount. Together they would fight, and if that fight were to happen today, together they would die. He’d tried to fight, or fire his bow, rather, from horseback the previous season. Bandits were attacking a caravan and there he came to the rescue. Only not at all. Dinah and the rest of her knights made short work of the enemies while Orion futilely attempted to slay the sky. He was actually thankful for the training, but it was also rather annoying. He knew it was going to be quite the difficult experience.
The flat of the broadsword rested against his shoulder while the leather reins were looped in his grasp. He didn’t have terribly much practice with one handed riding, but there was nothing like adding the difficulty of swinging a weapon at the same time. Dinah had set before them a fairly straight forward test of prowess. Dummies were set up in two straight lines, staggered apart in their spacing. The distance was just enough that a horse could ride through unhindered.
”The object is to ride as hard as you can down this path and swing at the targets as you pass them. Faster is better, but only if you’re accurate. You want to fell each foe, rather than leaving them capable of fighting. I’ll show you what I mean and then you can give it a try. Or many tries. We’re here for you, after all.” Dinah flashed a smile before pulling down the visor on her helm. Turning her horse to face the course, the woman was off in a blur. Her control of her mount was impressive, but not half as impressive as the blade she wielded.
Orion had been on the receiving end of more than his fair share of strikes from the surprisingly powerful Dinah Lorene. The knight hardly wasted any effort; each strike was meant to lead to a killing blow. There was no flashiness, no glamor in the way she fought. The billions of bruises Orion had experienced would attest to that very fact.
Dinah flew past each target, her blade lashing out and hitting every foe in the head or neck as she passed the wooden enemies. It seemed like it only took a tick and then it was all over. Every single one had been struck well and she was on her way back. ”Your turn, Orion! Go!” She would see how well he did with just a viewing of her run. Her expectations were far from high, but the squire had surprised her before.
”What? No breakdown? Just go?”
”That’s what I said,” she replied, shouting as she raised her visor once more, a full smile countering the distraught squire.
Orion shook his head and closed his helmet, bringing the sword down to his side. His eyes peeked out from behind the slits in the visor, taking in the task before him. The forehand swings were going to be fairly simple; it was a natural motion. The backhand slashes were going to be something else altogether. He’d have to lean in his seat, and that was not something that he was terribly comfortable doing. Orion had fallen from his saddle more times than he was proud to admit, and this was just begging for it to happen again.
”Any particular reason you’re still sitting here, Orion?”
Dinah’s voice cut through his focus as he gave her a sideways glance. He was glad that the helmet was hiding the scowl on his face; he knew she’d give him a harder time otherwise. With a kick to the side of his mount he was off, hooves pounding against the dirt floor of the arena.
The squire bounced in the saddle, anticipation brewing as he neared the first target. Orion reared back with his broad sword and swung, a wild slash making contact with the arm of the dummy. It wasn’t a killing blow, and Dinah was sure to reprimand him, but at least he’d hit right?
He wouldn’t be able to say the same for the second target. Orion’s reflection on his first attack led him riding past the second target.
Shyke.
He pushed his feet down in his stirrups and urged the horse to go faster. His mind was torn all over, trying to focus on delievering a solid swing, making sure that swing actually connect, maintaining control of the mount, and not falling from the saddle. His leg muscles were tense and he was trying to make sure he didn’t pull on the reins and give the horse the wrong idea about what he was supposed to be doing.
Another slice, another glancing blow as his instability in the saddle left him bouncing as he tried to take down his foe. At least it was another hit. Taking no time to reflect on the individual attack, this time the squire was preparing himself for his next foe. Only he had no idea how to really go about it. He was controlling the mount with his left hand, so to reach over and swing with his right was a little confusing due to the horse’s head that he didn’t really wish to remove.
So he gave it a shot.
Orion flailed his arm across his body, trying to land a solid blow while leaning slightly on the left of saddle. Nearly swallowing his tongue as he bounced awkwardly, the flat of the sword smacked against the head of the target and Orion’s wrist simultaneously bent at an awkward angle. That caused him to release his grip on the weapon. Instantly he turned his head forward, refusing to risk the slightest chance of seeing Dinah until he’d finished his run.
With a rein in both hands, Orion leaned forward, squeezing his legs harder and brining the horse to a full gallop. Target after target whizzed by as he raced down the course. No glory awaited him at the end, however. Only reprimand.
I love your work, as always.
