2nd Spring, 517 AV
The ever-present sound of steel meeting steel echoed in the background all across the Antinous Training Grounds as knights of all shapes and sizes, wielding weapons of all shapes and sizes, fought one another in mock combat beneath the boiling heat of the sun. There was almost always someone practicing in the grounds, even at night, and today was no exception. Not even the growing unease at the poor crop harvests or the unnaturally hot spring was enough to deter the spirits of the knights away from their regular training, in fact many of them seemed to swing with more aggression than usual as their stress found an outlet in the weapon in their hands.
There was a line of punching bags over in one of the corners of the training ground, one of which was in use by Michael as the he practiced his punches. In a steady rhythm like a beating drum the squire threw punch after punch, twisting at the hips into it and spinning his fists as they landed to pound powerful blows into the bag. Although he was definitely ranked quite low in the order in terms of physical strength years of sailing had made him no weakling either, and after learning how to throw his fists right each of his punches would land a bruise most people would feel in the morning.
But no one could punch forever, and after about a chime of work Michael decided that the heat was getting to him and that he needed a break. Like most of the other knights about the ground Michael had taken of the outer layers of his armor to cool off, but even that wasn't helping much. What he needed was a drink.
There were barrel of clean, but sadly warm, water set up in the center of the ground with cups available to keep the knights hydrated, which Michael headed over too. After taking a drink Michael sat down to rest and observe the rest of the crowd, watching how they moved as they fought and how they used their weapons. There were a few people who, like him, were fighting with their bare hands, however they mostly all seemed to be focused on wrestling or brawling than using any notable technique.
He sighed as he continued looking around the grounds. It would be nice to talk with another knight who trained in a martial art style for once, they might be able to give him some pointers.
