Solo The edge of how

[Reed]

7th of Winter

Today, Reed warmed up with a pollaxe. Though blunted, it still cleaved chunks out of the practice dummy he was swinging against. The ‘dummy’ was made up of two thick, roughhewn logs, strapped crosswise with rope. “Remember your form Reed” Kaer admonished from the side, holding a pole axe of his own. Chagrined, he imitated his mentor, griping the lower end of the haft with his right hand, and the upper with his left. “When sparring, you are going to want to jab with the bottom till you force an opening. From there, you’ve got three great choices for a strike.” Demonstrating, Kaer swung forward with the bottom of his pollaxe, striking the dummy with the metal que end before he took a step backwards and swung the head downwards. The axe cracked into the head of the dummy and sliced off the top few inches.

Taking a step forward, he went through the strikes in slow motion. First, he swung the bottom of the axe out, and swept the cue in upwards. It bounced off the arm, so he pulled back, trying again. He wasn’t used to working with such reach before, and to be honest he was exhausted from his training earlier in the day. As hard as they worked him in the pits, he didn’t have to do it strapped up in a harness of plate. That made everything immensely more exhausting. His second swing paced the arm but missed the top mark he was going for. He tried again, going even slower this time, and tapped carefully a place on the “upper chest” of the dummy. Then pulling down with his right, and up with his left, he worked the head of the pollaxe carefully through an arch till it came gently to rest against the side of the dummy’s head.

Muscles trembling, he held the pose for a few moments before letting his arms droop, pollaxe held horizontally before him. “I like it”

“You are holding it a bit too close to the head and too far from the end, but you are getting the picture” Kaer replied sternly, showing him again how he was holding the weapon. Reed nodded and adjusted his grip on the haft. Right foot forward, and left back a step, he held the pollaxe at an angle. Like Kaer was doing, he carried it horizontally, the metal butt waving in front of him. According to Kaer, this was so he could fend off strikes, and provoke an opening before swinging in with the slower, heavier end. It made sense to him. Whether it had been a cage fight or the pits, swinging around heavy objects tended to make you vulnerable if you couldn’t swing them fast enough. That’s because they were much more predictable when it came to strike with them, so you either had to surprise them with speed, or force them into a position where they would not be able to dodge or counterattack in time. Even better if you could do both. Personally, Reed preferred a good chair, but he was quickly growing fond of the power behind the pollaxe. Plus, a chair would have a hard time against armored opponents.

After jabbing the dummy with the metal butt in a straightforward strike, he tried swinging it like Kaer had and promptly missed. His axe head buried itself in the soil after hitting nothing but air. Halfheartedly, Reed tried raising it from the soil, but burned out, he leaned against the pollaxe instead.

[Reed]

“Don’t tell me you are getting tired already?” Kaer tisked, swinging the hammer end of his pollaxe into the side of the dummy with a solid thunk. Reed nodded, to which Kaer just shook his head. “Today’s exercises were just a warmup. By the end of this season, you’ll need to be ready to do a lot more than just that”

“Wouldn’t be so bad if I didn’t have to wear this petching armor all day” He replied panting, and finally heaving the head of his pollaxe from the dirt. “Its like an oven after you get just a few steps in”

“You had a break not even a bell ago” Kaer protested, slamming into the dummy with the head spike. In response, Reed sighed loudly, and mopped some of the sweat from his brow. “Yeah, and how long was that exactly, fifteen chimes?”

“Weren’t you a fighter? What they didn’t train you better than that?”

Gripping his pollaxe tight, Reed went in for another swing, burying the blade of his pollaxe into the arm of the dummy. After a few hearty tugs it came free, and Reed squared up with Kaer. “Oh, I know how to fight. We just didn’t have these sweat boxes for punishment and thank the gods we didn’t. Days like these make me crave the kiss of rawhide over the torment that is plate mail.”

Kaer raised an eyebrow and laughed. “A bit dramatic. I think you are just still too skinny. It’ll go better for you once you get some fat on your bones. You’d think a farming city might have fed you a little better.”

Reed shrugged and held the pollaxe horizontally like Kaer had taught him. “Can we go ahead and spar so I can get this off?”

Kaer nodded and held his pollaxe at the ready. “You first”

Stepping forwards, gripping the haft tight, he poked cautiously forward. Kaer just stepped backwards and started to circle him. Turning with him, he jabbed again, this time getting batted aside and poked in the chest by Kaer’s que. Reed stumbled back, barely managing to catch himself as the older Akalak came in swinging across with the butt of his pollaxe. Ducking the blow, he struck towards Kaer’s midsection. Kaer countered by turning right and trapping the end of the pollaxe between his shaft and armor. Before he could comprehend what was happening, Kaer sharply twisted and ripped the pollaxe from his grasp. It went sailing across the yard a short way before clattering against the rocky soil.

“You are gripping too high again” Kaer said as he went to retrieve the discarded weapon. “I wouldn’t have gotten enough leverage any other way.”

Flush with embarrassment, Reed simply nodded and accepted his weapon back, making a point to grip it exactly how he saw Kaer was. No doubt in the heat of the chime he would forget all about hand placement, but habits were formed slowly, not all at once. He had to be careful not to beat himself up about it too much. He looked up to see Kaer standing at the ready, hardly tired from their training today. Sun at his back, he could barely make out the slight grin on the man’s face. So damn cocky.

Taking in a deep breath, Reed took a step forwards and swung out with his que. Kaer dodged and responded with a jab of his own that slapped against the side of his knee. Reed swung again, wildly this time, Kaer lazily dodging the swing and slapping the back of his right hand with the que. Gritting his teeth, he tried spinning around to get a quick strike in, but he was slow, and clumsy in his armor. His left foot caught against his right, dropping him to his knees just in time to take another twack from the que of Kaer’s pollaxe to his chest. It hadn’t been a particularly strong blow, but off balanced and tired as he was, he fell onto his back. For a few moments there was silence, and then Kaer started laughing. Unexpected anger boiled in his blood, and pride pricked, he hastily climbed to his feet.

He charged Kaer, finding new wind in this brewing tempest. This time, he swung with the head, a heavy overhand chop angled for Kaer’s shoulder. Kaer’s face wrinkled in confusion as he parried the blow with his que, easily checking the axe to swing harmlessly to the side. Reed stumbled forward and caught himself. Turning towards Kaer, he charged again. He had to at least get one bloody blow in, right? He thrust with the head spike, and Kaer let it pass inside his reach before knocking his against the haft, and the head spike of his pollaxe buried itself in the soil. Reed grunted and struggled to pull it out of the soil, but Kaer put a boot against the head.

[Reed]

“Don’t tell me you are getting tired already?” Kaer tisked, swinging the hammer end of his pollaxe into the side of the dummy with a solid thunk. Reed nodded, to which Kaer just shook his head. “Today’s exercises were just a warmup. By the end of this season, you’ll need to be ready to do a lot more than just that”

“Wouldn’t be so bad if I didn’t have to wear this petching armor all day” He replied panting, and finally heaving the head of his pollaxe from the dirt. “Its like an oven after you get just a few steps in”

“You had a break not even a bell ago” Kaer protested, slamming into the dummy with the head spike. In response, Reed sighed loudly, and mopped some of the sweat from his brow. “Yeah, and how long was that exactly, fifteen chimes?”

“Weren’t you a fighter? What they didn’t train you better than that?”

Gripping his pollaxe tight, Reed went in for another swing, burying the blade of his pollaxe into the arm of the dummy. After a few hearty tugs it came free, and Reed squared up with Kaer. “Oh, I know how to fight. We just didn’t have these sweat boxes for punishment and thank the gods we didn’t. Days like these make me crave the kiss of rawhide over the torment that is plate mail.”

Kaer raised an eyebrow and laughed. “A bit dramatic. I think you are just still too skinny. It’ll go better for you once you get some fat on your bones. You’d think a farming city might have fed you a little better.”

Reed shrugged and held the pollaxe horizontally like Kaer had taught him. “Can we go ahead and spar so I can get this off?”

Kaer nodded and held his pollaxe at the ready. “You first”

Stepping forwards, gripping the haft tight, he poked cautiously forward. Kaer just stepped backwards and started to circle him. Turning with him, he jabbed again, this time getting batted aside and poked in the chest by Kaer’s que. Reed stumbled back, barely managing to catch himself as the older Akalak came in swinging across with the butt of his pollaxe. Ducking the blow, he struck towards Kaer’s midsection. Kaer countered by turning right and trapping the end of the pollaxe between his shaft and armor. Before he could comprehend what was happening, Kaer sharply twisted and ripped the pollaxe from his grasp. It went sailing across the yard a short way before clattering against the rocky soil.

“You are gripping too high again” Kaer said as he went to retrieve the discarded weapon. “I wouldn’t have gotten enough leverage any other way.”

Flush with embarrassment, Reed simply nodded and accepted his weapon back, making a point to grip it exactly how he saw Kaer was. No doubt in the heat of the chime he would forget all about hand placement, but habits were formed slowly, not all at once. He had to be careful not to beat himself up about it too much. He looked up to see Kaer standing at the ready, hardly tired from their training today. Sun at his back, he could barely make out the slight grin on the man’s face. So damn cocky.

Taking in a deep breath, Reed took a step forwards and swung out with his que. Kaer dodged and responded with a jab of his own that slapped against the side of his knee. Reed swung again, wildly this time, Kaer lazily dodging the swing and slapping the back of his right hand with the que. Gritting his teeth, he tried spinning around to get a quick strike in, but he was slow, and clumsy in his armor. His left foot caught against his right, dropping him to his knees just in time to take another twack from the que of Kaer’s pollaxe to his chest. It hadn’t been a particularly strong blow, but off balanced and tired as he was, he fell onto his back. For a few moments there was silence, and then Kaer started laughing. Unexpected anger boiled in his blood, and pride pricked, he hastily climbed to his feet.

He charged Kaer, finding new wind in this brewing tempest. This time, he swung with the head, a heavy overhand chop angled for Kaer’s shoulder. Kaer’s face wrinkled in confusion as he parried the blow with his que, easily checking the axe to swing harmlessly to the side. Reed stumbled forward and caught himself. Turning towards Kaer, he charged again. He had to at least get one bloody blow in, right? He thrust with the head spike, and Kaer let it pass inside his reach before knocking his against the haft, and the head spike of his pollaxe buried itself in the soil. Reed grunted and struggled to pull it out of the soil, but Kaer put a boot against the head.

[Reed]

Reed looked up to see Kaer staring at him in concern. “What?” Reed blurted, still half tugging at the pollaxe. “Your wasting your energy, and time. Think about your strikes, and how you pick and choose them.” “I am thinking” “No, you are not. You are acting on impulse. That shite might have worked for you back in Sunberth, but Knights fight with a lot more discipline.” “Oh, I know all about discipline” Reed scoffed, and pulled out his pollaxe right when Kaer lifted his foot off. “No, you don’t, otherwise you wouldn’t be gripping about a little extra work and getting emotional when you should be levelheaded and absorbing what I am teaching you.”

Reed crooked an eyebrow. “I’m not getting emotional...” He started, but then he saw the look on Kaer’s face. It was something he hadn’t seen in the older Akalak’s eyes before, but he’d seen plenty in his master’s face. “Alright, maybe a bit. I think it is just getting used to the training. Sometimes...” He trailed off. He hadn’t exactly talked about his intrusive thoughts with Kaer before. They’d walked around the subject a few times but hadn’t explicitly confronted it yet. Petch, he hadn’t ever acknowledged them to himself. They were just a part of him, a nasty part of him that he felt ashamed and afraid of at times. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to talk about that just yet. “Sometimes, I just get back into that pit mindset, and its hard to shake. I’m trying my best to be mindful though, I apologize.”

Kaer looked at him thoughtfully for several moments, and then stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder. “That’s fine. I know where you come from, and it would be surprising if there weren’t a few hiccups along the way. Just work on keeping focused every day, okay? Even at night, when you are not training, try internalizing these ideas I am teaching you. They will save your life one day.”

Reed nodded, and gripped Kaer’s forearm in return. “I will, and thank you.” Kaer smiled. “I suppose that has earned you another small break. Reed just chuckled and went to fetch some water. Would this training day ever end. . Kaer joined him at the water barrel, taking his own sip from the ladle before turning back towards the training yard. “Hang in there, and you’ll conquer it. You just got to find the approach that works for you.”

Reed didn’t answer immediately, and instead took a long gulp of water while he considered. He didn’t like not being in control of his feelings, but really, when had he ever been. He’d had temper issues from birth according to the slave who’d midwifed him, and for a good majority of his life, he’d been content to ignore that. After all, he had plenty of reasons to be angry, it was just when he misplaced it that he felt shame. He didn’t like being that man he’d been back in Sunberth, and here he didn’t have to, but still he came back. He was wondering about if that would ever change when Kaer spoke again.

“Get out of that plate, and then come find me alright?”

Reed nodded, relieved and set about unstrapping from his harness. As always getting out of the plate was a drawn-out affair of fumbling with the cinches until he was finally free and could feel the sweet breeze on his damp skin. Feeling a hundred pounds lighter, he jogged over to where Kaer was standing, likewise free of plate.

[Reed]

“Let’s do some stretches and then go for a run. That was a good start today, tomorrow I hear they are taking you squires to get a taste of some of the more difficult stuff”

Reed sighed loudly, and then stretched his hands down to the tips of his feet like Kaer was doing. He could feel the muscles in his back losing some of their tension which felt wonderful after being in harness for most of the day. Idly he wondered what the petch they had planned for tomorrow while he imitated Kaer’s next stretch which was to twist towards his left, and without moving his feet grip his right calf with both hands. Reed wasn’t quite so flexible yet, so he settled for his right upper thigh feeling his back pop as they held the movement for half a chime. Then they did the other side before Kaer sat on the ground with his right foot under him, left leg extended. With both hands again, he reached and held the tip of his boot for half a chime like before. Reed tried doing the same, but his hands came as far as his shin. Gripping for purchase, he fingers crawled a few more inches but a smarting pain in his back prevented him from going any further. Kaer just chuckled and did the other leg the same way. “Just be glad we aren’t doing the balancing bit today. As tired as you look, I thought you might topple over.”

“I don’t know, toppling over doesn’t sound too bad right about now.” Reed said with a grin, as they stood up. Reed rotated on shoulder, and then the other. “Around the grounds a few times then?”
“Yes” Kaer said, taking off at a jog. Reed walked into his jog after the man, and then transitioned into a run. He kept his pace slow as he worked some feeling into his jelly legs. He breathed in and out hard through his mouth as he moved, focusing on pushing past the pain that shot up his legs with every step. Not even halfway around the first circuit, he could already feel a familiar ache in his shins that gripped him like a vice. Kaer was far and away ahead, but that was to be expected. He might have been amongst the most fit among his household but here the training was a good deal more intense. It was something that he was starting to love and hate in equal measure. The guilt free challenge of it appealed to him, but in other respects it was a good deal duller than what he expected from knight training. Expecting to be an expert at sword fighting right off the bat had been silly of him, but still, he hadn’t expected to suck at it so much. As much as he sucked at it though, that was the most enjoyable part of his training, and unfortunately, most of his training was this. Exercising his body to its limits.

To his surprise, Kaer was already lapping him, and slowed his run to pace him. “Try breathing through your nose, and out through your mouth, and pick up your feet. You are creating more work for yourself dragging your self like that.” Then he picked up the pace and was quickly disappearing ahead. Nodding to himself, Reed tried just that, sucking in hair through his nose and out through his mouth. He didn’t immediately see the benefits but once he got adjusted to the change, his chest felt a bit better though that may have been all mental. He still felt like he wasn’t getting enough air, but it set a nice rhythm that his feet followed. About picking his feet up, he wasn’t quite sure what Kaer meant but he tried pushing off the ball of his foot instead of his heel which added a bit of a bounce to his step. The blisters there ached something fierce, but his shins felt a little less tight. Still thinking about it, he tried raising his knees higher with every step, not a lot higher, only slightly, and was trying that as he completed his first circuit. A nausea had started to fill him, but he suppressed that as he came around to see Kaer waiting for him.

He slowed down to a walk when he came within a few meters of the man. “Better, but your form still could use some work. For now, though, that’s it for today. You’ve done good enough.” Kaer said with a smile, patting him on the back, and starting to walk away. “Just make sure you clean your plate and wash your garments before tomorrow. If you reek, they’ll make you do more than just a few laps.”

“Of course, I’ll see you around Kaer” Reed said, and then sat against a rock, catching his breath for a minute. His vision went black for a moment before he remembered to stand up. Forgot about that he chuckled to himself before he walked around in a circle for a little bit, before stretching and grabbing his plate. He left the training grounds with his head high, feeling a bit better about his role here.

[Alric Lysane]

Reed

Hi!

Should you return please update your CS and PM/DM me for your Grade!

~ Alric