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[Favchean Hronis]

70th Winter 513

The Tuvya Sasaran was much like it was most days, mostly Akalaks testing themselves against each other. There were the occasional humans among the mix, those wanting to test themselves against the fierce warriors of the predominate race in Riverfall. Very few kelvics were present, and perhaps even fewer still Konti. It was a very good indication on the city's demographic, which depending on who you asked was either a good thing or a bad thing.

There was little in structured lessons, mostly the Masters were instructing from the sidelines today their students. However there was one very large green male on the mat pitted against another Akalak of a blue nature. Favchean Hronis was locked in a pitched battle, at least of the sparring nature, his body moved with an agility that defied his thick size. The two Akalak showed how much diversity there could be in a race where largeness was a factor, the blue being tall lean and built with solidness that was inherent in the race. The green was a little shorter, rising only to six foot five inches, but his shortness was compensated for thickness that made his speed look odd.

The two Akalaks did not hold back in their sparring session, something both agreed to readily, so it is not a surprise that both took some lumps in their little match. Favchean favored his left side, using the fact that he was a southpaw to his advantage. Hiding his dominant hand coming in for a strike with his body that right handed people tended to over look due to the backwardness of the pose.

His arm drove upwards into the blue's chin, the blue did not hesitate after the first second stun that a strike to the chin gives. The blue elbow flung into green side, and then a second blue fist is matched into the solid abdomen. Favchean grunts as the strikes hit home, but instead of defensively backing up, he pressed the attack further though his side ached. His arm came to crash around the blue man, who was taller but more narrow, and as his knee came up his arm crushed the other man down, ramming the knee into his ribcage.

Neither Akalak was fighting to damage, so while their sparring was not 'pulled' like some do but neither are they attempting to disable or injure the other unduly. So it was at the end of the bout, when Favchean managed to lock his opponents arm in his elbow, and pull his leg up and around to trip him and put him on the mat, both males were up, a quick clasp of the forearm is given. Both were bruised, but neither were significantly damaged, and both were grinning. The blue walked off after a little exchange, but Favchean remained his arms swinging gently to work out his muscles, keeping them loose. He wasn't quite sure he was done for today, he would leave it up to chance. If anyone steps onto his mat while he is performing his cool down routine he will continue..if not then he will leave once his muscles have been properly tended to.

[Kavala]

Kavala was in terrible shape and she knew it. Her midriff still had excess flesh from the children and though she'd been working out at home - running the beach and lifting weights - there was still so much she needed to do to get back into shape. And Kavala was too stubborn to ask anyone from The Sanctuary to help. In fact, she'd been rather closed lipped to everyone at home for the entire season, spending time with the children - all five of them - and making sure they were settling in well. Tasival had been a big help, especially fascinated with his new siblings. Kavala had named the little boy and girl, but Taisval had shook his head and asked his mom to stop calling one boy the other one day when the child wouldn't stop crying. Then he'd promptly corrected his mom on the boys name. It was a flashback to when Raiya had done the same thing. The Akontaks emerged quickly, and to each of them the difference was like day and night even though the Konti that brought them into the world was clueless.

So, after almost half a season of being home, Kavala new it was time to turn to additional help to get back into shape. She'd come to the Sasaran to use some of their equipment. And while it wasn't exactly designed as a gym, it had things The Sanctuary wasn't really supplied with. And it had something else even more valuable. It had Akalak that knew how to train and whom wouldn't baby her overly much. Cadra and Larik were babysitting for her to have time to visit, and so she'd came in with haste and after looking around, got right into a workout on their equipment, checking in with a body coach who assigned her a series of exercises to help tighten her middle back up.

Before the children, Kavala would have not hesitated to strip down to a tight leather set of workout pants and a halter top that supported her breasts but left her midriff bare. Now, she was embarrassed about how she looked and with all the loose skin, so she worked out in a oversized thin tunic that covered the parts of her body she hated. No one, not even one of the healers like Caleum, was going to see her naked until she was in better shape. And she was bound and determined to get her healthy body back.

So as she worked out under the watchful eyes of the body coach, sweating and doing the exercises she was instructed too. Twenty sit-ups, the repetitions were brutal and so too where squat thrusts. The coach rested her by letting her do grape vines back and forth to keep her heart rate up but let her burning muscles relax, and then she was set to lifting weights and doing push ups to work on her weak upper body strength. When she was done, the instructor told her to spar with folks, and she grabbed the double bladed sword without thinking and went to stand in line with the hopefuls. While she was doing so, she noticed the kind green-skin man she'd met at the beautyfest either taking or giving a beat down to a well matched opponent in a far off section of the place. A konti - one Kavala had met before - beckoned her over. The woman named Milla had a quarterstaff, and together the two girls faced off.

Kavala held the two-bladed sword in a defensive position and waited for the other Konti to attack. The quarterstaff was something she'd never faced before, so Kavala paid careful attention as the woman spun it, reversed it, and then tried to thrust it into Kavala's midsection. The Konti brought the double bladed wooden sword around, blocked the quarterstaff and launched her own attack that consisted of two bounced steps forward and a sideways thrust of the left sided blade. She was blocked and countered, and then the fight was on.

[Favchean Hronis]

Favchean finished his cool down, his arms now feeling that pleasantly limp feeling after a good work out. His core was lacking that feeling though, so he was not quite satisfied. Moving off the mat, he was contemplating going to the Kuvay'Nas lodge, or going to see what sort of items that he might use here when his eyes caught sight of two Konti women. One looked familiar, and after only a moment he recognized her from Sybel and Vanator's wedding. He had also given her beads during the fall's beautyfest, quite honestly finding her the most beautiful for the mere fact of her pregnancy. There was something about a pregnant woman that he found irresistible, and though she was no longer pregnant she was still attractive. The other Konti woman he didn't know, and immediately his pale eyes fell to her wrist to search for a nakivak bracelet. It was second nature for him to check, nothing more.

he moved over closer to the mat that the Konti were sparring at, Favchean squatted easily, compressing his large body, his elbows rested on his knees comfortably while he watched. The one he recognized, Kavala he thinks her name was, was using the same weapon that Riaris had beat him soundly with. His first instinct always has been, and always will be, to protect the females of Riverfall, particularly those who have done their duty to provide children. However his encounter a few years back with a certain Myrian warrioress had disabused him of the notion that all women needed to be protected by his body alone, but opened up the possibility of teaching them to protect themselves. Of course, only if there wasn't a line of Akalak warriors between them and danger.

So he watched, fascinated a little, and he recognized a few motions that the one using the double bladed sword as combos that Riaris himself had used against him. If memory served correctly, it was the Violet Akalak that had met the Konti at the beach party, it made sense to assume that she might have learned a few things at his hand. He found himself rooting for the Konti that he knew, though he had nothing against the other woman that he didn't, only that the instinct for a challenge urged him to choose a side.

[Kavala]

Kavala was pretty terrible with the double bladed sword. That much was evident from a few moments watching her spar with the other Konti. But, luckily, the other Konti was just learning the quarterstaff as well, so the two women were having a good time being equally matched and fumbling through it. Their motions were slow, paying careful attention to their footwork and balance, taking things slow in the early stages of learning any new weapon.

Kavala took some good hits, but then again so did the Konti - she later learned was named Misha - that she fought. The woman was in good shape, if not a little smaller than Kavala, and also recovering from a pregnancy. Kavala watched the woman's footwork, which was excellent. The Konti moved like a dancer which Kavala could admire for certain as she faced her. Thinner and more flexible than Kavala, Misha spun her quarterstaff elegantly even if she let her grip slide or had trouble awkaardly changing its direction at times. Kavala ahd the same trouble, even once tripping over one end of her double blade as she let it slide too close to the floor before bringing it up. And where the other girl was better at footwork, Kavala had more upper body strength to control her double blade. She used that to her advantage and often got in head shots that she pulled at the last minute in order to not hurt the other Konti.

That wasn't to say she had the advantage though. She didn't. Misha was good at tripping someone with her quarterstaff and had Kavala down on the mats more times than she could count. The two sparred for a good ten minutes, most of their workout consisting of blocking attacks and learning to move to avoid the other weapon. Kavala picked up an awesome technique that involved turning her body sideways and drawing her blade up parallel with her body then sidestepping and missing a one-two rolled vertical strike with a quarterstaff. In return, she showed the other Konti how to rap the double bladed welder on the knuckles to potentially get them to drop the blade.

And Kavala did notice when the deep green Akalak came to the edge of the mats and sat himself down to watch. She offered him a smile, recognizing him from both the Beautyfest and Sybel's wedding. The nod earned her a sharp blow to the forearm by Misha which caused her to lose her grip on the double bladed sword. Almost dropping it, Misha tripped her and they called the bought over. A tall deep blue Akalak joined Misha, offered her a smile and escorted her home after she said her thanks and goodbye to Kavala. Her husband, Roscu, she'd introduced the tall man as, which made Kavala smile and blink in surprise. A slight tinge of jealousy passed through her as she watched the couple slip out, Roscu obviously sweaty as well from a workout elsewhere in the sasaran, looked like he cared enough to let his wife workout and stay in shape.

Turning to Favchean, she nodded a smile. "Haven't seen you since the wedding. How are you doing Favchean? It is Favchean right? I'm afraid I've never made your brother's acquaintance." Kavala said politely, grabbing a towel and mopping off her face as she leaned her sword up over her shoulder... causually. The girl was breathing hard and sweating, but she looked otherwise healthy if a bit out of shape.

"I'm here trying to slim up and get back into fighting shape after having the baby. How's Rosela? I haven't seen her in a bit. You two looked like a nice couple at the wedding." The Konti said politely, mopping the sweat off her face and finally catching her breath.

[Favchean Hronis]

The fact that the two Konti were awkward and hesitant with their chosen weapons did not diminish Favchean's enjoyment of the bout. Quite the opposite really, for he was eager to see what they could do, and he also appreciated the need for learning certain things like timing and instinctive maneuvers through practical practice rather then controlled training exercises.

When the two were finished, Favchean levers himself up once more standing to his full height. His arms cross casually over his broad bare chest, his feet automatically squaring, his breeches were the old ones that so vexed his mother and most probably Rosela. His grin was natural and easy, his teeth shockingly white against the depth of his green skin when she acknowledged him. He returned, his common not quite as knowledgeable as his Tukant but at least conversational. "The wedding was a grand affair but unfortunately such festivities are too few and far between. I am doing well, it is indeed Favchean.." The Akalak gestured with his hand, toward his head an airy gesture as if indicating something within. "Chealvan, he is around. He makes his appearances.." The last is said with a shrug and a grin, as if it was not a carefully choreographed and controlled life that they lived together.

Once he finished with his gesture his arm dropped back to his waist, rocking back just a little on his heels as he let a light chuckle escape. "I had heard that you safely delivered, I trust things are well out there at the Sanctuary? You have all that you need?" His question was sincere, not merely lip service to a need to be polite. He held nothing but the most respect for those who have created life within their bodies. But her question on Rosela and the comment of their appearance at the wedding made him smile. "Rosela is fine, I am sure she is still up to her elbows in planning, sewing..or possibly up to her elbows with suitors." There was no rancor in his tones, indeed there was amusement at the words. He and Rosela were friendly, and enjoyed a night out and about occasionally. He found her witty and attractive, he really wasn't quite sure what she found in him but it was a mutually benefitting relationship that held no strings for either to get entangled.

"Trying to trim up? Do you normally use the larger weapons? Or is it a relatively new endeavor? Toning is to get back lost muscle mass, but that works better with using muscle memory rather than trying to teach your muscles new uses."

[Kavala]

Kavala offered Favchean a smile when he reassured her he was indeed Favchean. It was good to know his brother’s name though. She filed the name ‘Chealvan’ away for future reference. When he stood, giving her room to catch her breath, she smiled at him. She liked his response to her query about the wedding and simply nodded. “That’s all too true. Riverfall needs more reason to celebrate. I wish we had such joy far more often than we do.” Kavala said, shaking her head slightly and thinking about her own situation a moment.

Kavala nodded again, following Favchean’s words. He was a pleasant Akalak, one she’d had contact with a few times and hadn’t minded being around. Impeccable manners, courteous, and very intelligent, he was everything that most women didn’t think the Akalak as a race were. Nor was he that bad to look at either. His deep green skin was gorgeous and reminded her of her own son a little, though she wasn’t sure Ralac had exactly settled on a permanent skintone. He seemed to still be so dark as to be black, though she hoped that would change as he grew. It would really help if he and Inadan had their father’s violet coloring, even if it was a far deeper shade. She worried, somewhere in the near future, Riaris would question the children’s parentage. Though with Ia’del, anyone could have sired the pale Konti girl and no one would be the wiser.

“Thank you yes. I have three beautiful new children. The boys share a form, but my daughter is alone in her skin.” Kavala said, not getting into the fact that the duo was Akontak and that their sister was severely premature.

She smiled at his mention of Rosela and nodded, figuring his assessment was fairly close to the truth. “She is a truly beautiful soul inside and out. I think she regrets her race though, to some extent, because it causes your kind to often look elsewhere for permanence and at her for nothing much more than dallying. She is enamored with the culture here I think, and perhaps Riverfalls amazing people as well. It is good she is part of our community. None of us would be as well dressed or as well versed in fashion otherwise.” Kavala commented idly then glanced down at her blade and smiled.

“I’ve just recently begun to learn the weapon. That is why I’m somewhat slow and awkward with it. It takes a great deal more to learn than daggers. Riar…. Someone worried that I would not have the reach with daggers that I might need in a true fight so they suggested I learn another weapon. I gave this one a try.” Kavala explained. “I am decent with daggers though… I can train with those anytime. This thing… this awkward thing… needs a partner that’s willing to hit hard and help me learn faster.” Kavala said, laughing slightly and gesturing to her bruised knuckles. They had a bluish pink sheen against her skin though Favchean could tell they would go pea green then yellow in the ugliness of mature bruises soon.

“I need to trim up and build body mass again. I lost a lot of weight during my pregnancy. Even healers can sometimes be surprised by twins. And they were a large internal burden to carry so I have added flesh across my midsection that needs to go. I know it will take time, but I’m running, riding, and building strength with weights to get a jumpstart on it. Babies are a miracle, but I’m too young for a stomach so loose. When its empty of children, it is not a thing of pride.” Kavala said, speaking frankly to the man and setting her double-bladed wooden sword across her shoulder. “Would you care for a spar? I don’t know what you fight with, but as long as you chase me around with some sort of stick, its going to help me out.” Kavala said, smiling in good humor.

[Favchean Hronis]

Favchean raised his brows at the news of Kavala's children, he naturally assumed that meant she had twins a very rare thing indeed. "Twins! The gods have shone their grace on you then. I am very glad to see that you have came out of such a pregnancy well, with all that an Akalak pregnancy can entail." While he was not a father, and he was not a healer or skilled in medicine he knew the tolls that Akalak babies had on a female's body.

Her words on Rosela drew him short though, and a stab of guilt pierce him. He held himself aloof from Rosela for her race, but not because she was Eypharian, but because she was a high risk female. How could he ask anything more of Rosela, be anything more then friendly knowing that either he would have to sacrifice his duty to his people and forgo having sons, put Rosela at great risk in bearing him a son, or use a Nakivak which some females frowned upon when their male was in a relationship to them. All three would be completely unfair to Rosela, but perhaps he was selfish squiring her to events. He had not thought of it in those terms before.

"I am sure it is for her own safety, it is not because she is not someone that one would want permanence from." Favchean responded, not quite masking the slight defensive tones that came with a seed of guilt. He didn't also have to explain the idea of letting one grow close to the heart who would live but a fraction of the time he would if his life drew on it's natural course. She would understand that to an extent being Konti.

Yet she moved on to speak of another thing that was near and dear to his heart, weaponry and if it was possible his slightly pointed ears would have perked. His pleasure at the turn of the topic was evident on his face, a grin splitting his lips broadly. "I won't hear of such a thing, I think a mother's stomach is something of pride. You have born children, and that is not something to be ashamed of. You were beautiful at the Beautyfest, which was why I offered you a string of my beads, and you are beautiful now." His voice, a natural timbre of a growl but was now allowed to grow just a little louder to convey his conviction. As with most of things in his life, even the decibel of his voice was completely controlled.

"However, it is never a bad thing to work on your body. I usually use dagger or my own body..but if I am going to spar with you then I will use a similar weapon. I have once the same weapon, though it was just the once and experimental." He didn't say that he preferred to use a weapon he was untrained in, for the specific reason that he did not want to insult her by holding back, but he also did not want to inadvertently hurt her either. He had met Riaris Dokuvalis earlier in the season and he had introduced him to the double bladed sword, with a sound but interesting thrashing.

Favchean moved to the weapon rack, and carefully laid his dagger and his Lakan aside to pick up the wooden sword, its twin blades on either end jutted out from a wooden handle. He hefted it just a little, getting familiar with its weight and balance. "I am not that great with this weapon but it is never a bad thing to learn more. " This is said with a smile before he returned to the mat.

[Kavala]

Kavala smiled and didn’t try to correct Favchean on his misconception that she gave birth to twins. It wasn’t that important anyhow and she suspected that Ralac and Ia’del would go through their lives having to tell enough people they weren’t twins as it was. Favchean’s enthusiasm was catching though and she ended up smiling at his congratulations when normally she would have been uncomfortable with it. “Thank you. They are both doing well.” She added, and almost missed his slight frown at the mention of Rosela.

Interesting.

Had he presented the argument about longevity Kavala would have set him straight about just how long the Akalak tended to live. There were rarely any old men in Riverfall and rarely any over a couple of hundred years at that. They were battle hardened and prone to hardship, quick to defend Riverfall, and even more so to defend their families. Often, so very often, the shorter lifespan belonged to the Akalak for all their potential to live four hundred years or more.

“Thank you.” Kavala said in response to Favchean’s words, but the fact remained that she did not feel beautiful. The extra flesh the children had created needed to vanish, and she was going to get her way and get rid of it if it killed her. Thankfully she was a morpher enough that if she had to be without clothing, no one would know, but until she worked herself back into pre pregnancy shape, she was going to be shy and defensive about it. To the Konti a body was a temple. To most cultures it was, and her’s was ill kept at best at the moment.

“I work with dagger myself and am quite good with it. I took them in lue of the suvi of the Konti because they always seemed more practical to get a hold of than traveling to Mura if one needed to rearm because one damaged or lost a weapon in a fight.” Kavala said, glad he didn’t mind working on the double bladed sword with her. She would have hated to have to pull her thrusts and cuts just to keep the spar going. And by Nysel, the Akalak had fragile egos when it came to others who were as skilled with weapons as the big men themselves were. And while she had no idea where Favchean was in his dagger, by the way he moved she was certain he was at least trained in Unarmed Combat and maybe to a greater extend than she was. But with daggers, she was sure… he would have nothing on her. And maybe, working on her unarmed combat, that would get the loose flesh off her as quickly as possible… hopefully by the end of the season.

“I am not either. I have one that has live steel, but I often come here to learn more of this than I could alone.” She said, raising her blades and waiting for Favchean to approach. She bowed to him, waited for his bow in return, then without waiting for him to hesitate, she lunged forward, raising the left blade high for a slightly attack while bringing the right blade around by tilting her wrists to try and catch him on the thigh for a spar point. She wasn’t fully committed to her attack, but instead was just seeing how Fav was in reaction and counterattack.

[Favchean Hronis]

Favchean watched his smaller opponent, letting his pale eyes focus on her but also on her weapon. While his peripheral vision did not diminish he did block out the sounds of other training around him, allowing his focus to remain on the other fully. He had trained with this weapon once before, with a purple Akalak who had thrashed him soundly. It had been a good fight though he had ultimately lost by a large margin. Favchean didn't mind losing, though as Akalak he always wanted to win, but losing was necessary and better to do it in sparring matches then in real battles. Of course in real battle he wouldn't have chosen a weapon he was just learning.

Her strike toward his leg was easy enough to predict, and for someone who has spent most of his life in spars of one kind or another he could tell that it was a testing strike. He swung the the weapon in a quick but awkward arc that glanced off her left blade, and just barely managed to knock her low blade out of the way. If it had not been an attack that was meant to test, if she had been committed then he acknowledged the fact that she probably would have gained a point, he just wasn't quick enough with the arc.

Next it was his turn, he didn't try to go high or low, instead his wooden blade thrust in before swinging out with a twist of his wrists. The thrust was in hopes of getting her to lower her blade to parry, the twisted swing was adapted from a dagger move that would unarm another man if hooked just right by the blade. If she parried, and he managed to slip his blade below her parry, then just maybe the twist would tear the blade from her grasp. However, she was also accomplished in daggers, so it would in theory make it an obvious ploy.

Such was trying to learn a new weapon without a Master to teach, but instead foolishly just jumping in to spar with others. Favchean knew that his dark brother thought him foolish and foolhardy when it came to sparring with unknown weapons. However there was a reason Favchean trained strenuously with his dagger and unarmed combat techniques. Those he used in pitched battle, these were just a way to stretch his knowledge range of weapons.

[Kavala]

Kavala wasn’t the type of fighter that tried to prejudge or get inside an opponents head. To her that was waste of time because people changed their minds in a split instant. Half the time their bodies gave tells before their minds had even halfway decided anyhow. So trying to decide what someone was going to do or the why of it left a lot to be desired. This was especially true when their body was right there, in front of her, giving her plenty of information as it acted and reacted.

To her, fighting was a dance between two bodies, not a reaction or an action, but a choreographed response to two entirely different wills coming together for a mutual goal. And the two opening hits? They were just an introduction of sorts. A hello, how are you… lets see how we do together shall we?

Kavala also wasn’t the type of fighter to let the others move predict her response. She’d been in too many life threatening situations to be read easily or predicted. If the opponent wasn’t fighting in a manner she wanted them too, then a tilt of her body, a change in her response, often got them back into line in a way she deamed was acceptable.

The Konti healer kept her mind on her footwork, her balance, and kept her body chambered at all times, centered around the blade because she never forgot the blade was just a tool and the real weapon was her body. Smaller, faster, more flexible, the Konti had things going that the Akalak probably never considered. And she would use all of them to her advantage.

Kavala also didn’t take turns.

He knocked back her low swung test move and tried to bring his blade in and thrust it out, adapting something she’d never seen done with a double bladed sword before. Kavala was already shifting her stance, bracing her legs and pushing forward, crowding him before he could get the blade to twist in and swing out. She blinked because she wondered if he forgot the reach of the weapon he was using. Daggers were incredibly flexible, double bladed long swords were not.

In crowding him, it robbed him of the ability to completely finish the move before he could get the blade into the position he was aiming for. To complete it he’d either have to move back a step or readjust his swing. Kavala kept her blades defensive, flexible, with her shoulders floating and loose. She didn’t want to bring the weapon up or down and loose the advantage of a shield it gave her in parrying another’s thrust. But she didn’t have any hesitation in robbing him of the ability to move his own blades. To her the body could be moved to adjust the blade. It was better that way. Bringing it back in to twist it and shift its altitude didn’t give the fighter that much advantage. But if the fighter was able to bend, twist, and change these rules of nature faster by using his body more than his blades, it gave the spar a whole new meaning.

And so she sent the message loud and clear.

Once she’d made her point, she danced back, giving him more space and seeing how he’d react to the sudden crowding and then release. Kavala, in that moment, almost felt as if Recoomas was looking over her shoulder and smiling. Then she realized if he were, he’d probably pinch her ass and shove her back into the battle. So she moved forward again as if in response to the man her mind conjured as her teacher, dropped her body thus lifting her blades, and swung in a figure eight attack at him.