Fanfic:Amayani's Introduction to Archery

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Amayani's Introduction to Archery
Author(s)
  • Dan
  • Marit
Character(s)
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Waiting for the Asha'man (attn: Riven!)

Amayani do Ciresh a'Sorene

Amayani had quickly fallen into the daily routine in the Yards; it hadn't been difficult, considering she'd only been gone two days. And yet. If what Kailitha Gaidar had told her was true, she had been gone eight years. How could that be? She pushed the thought away as quickly as it surfaced, as she had done since talking with the Gaidin Captain. As she had done with every thought surfacing in her mind, every doubt and every longing for the people that were no longer there. She walked around in a near emotionless state, focusing only on the task ahead. For the first time she was close to mastering the Void.

Her focus that day was on the sword, which she had begun learning not long ago. She was late at learning the art of swordsmanship, she knew that; most trainees started out with the sword, or were at least competent in the weapon by the time they reached the rank of Ji. She had only started learning it a couple of months ago, when Shyne Gaidin had started teaching her the basics. She hadn't seen the Gaidin since coming back. Yet another person in her life, gone. No. She pushed the thought away.

Who her teacher today would be, she did not know, except that he was an Asha'man. And she didn't really care, except that a sneaking thought crept into her mind, wondering if she would know him, if there would be a familiar face at last. There were so few of them in the Yards. Empty mind. Calm, emotionless. Don't think.

She wished she had been told to bring practice swords along, so she could have gone through the motions she had learned while waiting. She had arrived early on purpose, not wanting to keep her teacher waiting. And it was way better then spending more time in the room then necessary. The room, not her room, as that one had been cleared out years ago, along with her stuff. No, don't think of that. It was her room now.

To let the time pass, she started stretching out. She was already warm from the morning run, started earlier then most trainees. She hadn't slept very well, not very long, the last nights. Memories she couldn't handle that were the past already, kept sneaking in, especially at night when her mind let its guard down. Better to be out and about. At least training kept her mind off everything else.

She was calm, emotionless. And she was waiting.

Breaking, and reforging.

Riven Trimak

Today, Riven had been given the duty to develop a child's ability to wield a blade, to forge the young woman from soft, malleable child to a strong, sharp adult. As he walked around the training grounds, he watched the girl from a distance. The task before him was not forced upon him, in fact, it was the Grey Tower offering Riven a favor.

He would be allowed to force a weapon for the Grey Tower, to forge a weapon in preparation for Tarmon Gaidon. He would judge the material, break it, and shape it. Sharpen it, and offer it to those in need.

He watched her, knowing very little. His past connections within Hama Valon had faded, people had changed allegiances. He only knew rumors, but those rumors were of great interest to the old blue.

Slowly approaching, he could appreciate the girls desire to be punctual, but she was clearly unprepared. She had been taught the basics, the bare basics. Ready or not, today, Amayani's life as a trainee will be greatly changed.

"Trainee, select a sword now." The Blue said, removing his scabbard, and placing it on the ground. "Choose carefully, anyone can hold a sword, anyone can slash and stab. But some can thrust, precisely, efficiently, and waste very little energy. Some can cut, very quickly, in multiple vital points, and move on to the next opponent. When you select a sword, think upon your training, think upon your successes, and your failures. Ideally, one should learn to improve their weak points, but today, girl, you are going to learn to take advantage of your strengths."

Grasping Saidin, he wove several threads into the ground, around the scabbard. It would be death for anyone trying to steal it. The ward, a simple ward at that, was a Green Ajah specialty. Anyone stepping into the ground would both sink and get stuck, then be shocked by the one power.

It rarely left survivors.

"Select a weapon, Ji'dar, and go through your forms. Not all of the forms you have been taught, the forms that feel natural to you."

Turning around, Riven faced the girl, his warded weapon at his back. He would not use such a weapon to train, especially when he probably needed different types of blades to teach her different lessons.

Quite inexperienced

Amayani do Ciresh a'Sorene

Yani watched the Asha'man approaching, recognizing him as he got closer. She did not know him personally, but his reputation was well known, and the rumors surrounding him plentiful. She didn't know which of those rumors to believe and which not to, as they ranged wide, but some had to be only rumors. Especially the one where he had returned from the dead. That was impossible. But so was appearing eight years into the future, wasn't it?

When the Asha'man got close, she greeted him with a respectful bow, and waited for the typical introduction. It didn't come, instead the man went straight to the point. It didn't matter; she knew his name, and he had probably been told hers. Besides, names were not needed for this. She found she liked his straight-forwardness.

She listened to his words, keeping her emotions tucked away, and eyed the sword rack at the same time. Choose carefully? She didn't know the different swords, not their uses and specialities. She had only ever used one type, and that one barely at all. How could she select a sword when she had so little to go on? She truly hadn't given it much thought, what kind of sword she wanted to learn.

She looked at the sword rack, trying to pick one. There were only a few of them she knew the use of, and honestly she barely knew that at all. Her eyes fell on the katana first, which was the sword she had been taught in, ever so little. It had felt strange to use, slow and clumsy, but much of that she put on her own experience, or lack thereof. Her eyes shifted to a boardsword, a sword type she had tested out in the weaponry a couple of times. She hadn't liked the one-hand sword, the feeling it gave was flimsy, and her left hand was left idling, not knowing what to do with it. It was a sword to be used with a shield, she recalled, though she couldn't see herself with a shield. The longswords she skipped right past, barely offering them a thought. They gave off a feel of being huge and slow, and too heavy for her. The rest she didn't know.

"Select a weapon, Ji'dar," the Asha'man said, "and go through your forms. Not all of the forms you have been taught, the forms that feel natural to you."

"Yes, sir," she replied, and took the katana off the rack. It was the sword she had started learning, and even if it felt a bit weird, she thought she could get used to it. Holding the sword in her hands, she wondered for a moment what to do with the scabbard, before sliding the sword out and putting the scabbard on the ground.

She walked away from the sword rack, not wanting to practice so close to other things, and stopped not far off, facing the Asha'man. Holding the sword in both hands, she felt a hint of nervousness. The emotionless state she was in, wasn't a perfected Void, and both thoughts and feelings kept trying to seep into her mind. She tried to push the nervousness away, but she could feel the Asha'man's eyes on her, watching, judging.

Taking a calming breath, she ignored his eyes, and the nerves, as best she could. It was her and the sword now, and though she lacked the connection she felt with the bow, she was determined to learn it.

"I have only been taught a few basic attacks, sir," she said as she found the basic stance - feet slightly apart, knees bent and the sword pointing to where an opponent's head might be - and started going through them. The first one was a vertical slash, starting high and ending low. She lifted the sword from the base position, and brought in down in one motion, dragging it slightly back and up at the end. Returning to the stance, she brought it into the second attack she'd learned, a horizontal slash. She turned the sword side-ways, the tip out to her right side, and brought it across in front of her before returning again. Next she brought the sword up to the left and followed through a diagonal slash that ended low right. As she returned to the basic stance once again, she went through the three attacks in one motion, not as smooth as she hoped, but not as jagged as it had been earlier.

"And a couple of defensive moves," she said, stopping shortly before taking a shot at the little defensive she knew, or hoped she knew. "One against high attacks," she twisted her stance so her left side was slightly forward, a stance similar to the defensive stance in unarmed, and her sword so it was horizontal in the height of her eyes almost, and the tip towards the left. "And one against low," she shifted from the base stance into defensive again, and flipped her sword down to the right and slightly forward, so it stopped at a diagonal angle towards the ground a little in front of her. One last time she returned to the basic stance, and looked at the Asha'man.

"That is all I know, sir," she said, and heard that a hint of the nervousness seeped into her voice. She could feel the judging eyes on her again.

Lessons of the advanced kind

Riven Trimak

“Who ever taught you the basics os swordplay, did a decent job.” the old Blue admitted, watching her form, the way she moved, the way she concentrated. The sword matched her skill, which was good to see. Some inexperienced trainees picked what seemed flashy, not what worked with their mentality. He was concerned though, she seemed to over-think her movements. “Your selection of weapon is good, your selection and performance of forms is on par with the warder yards expectations. But we’re going to take your training a step higher. Sheath the katana, and strap it to your back.” He commanded.

Walking to the rack, he selected another sword, smaller then the katana. He had once read a book about a Shienaran Gaidin, expert with both the blade and bow. There were several quotes in the book from the man, thanking the Light for the training to match the mindset of an archer, and a swordsman. He also highly praised the wakizashi, it’s shorter blade perfect for extremely close range.

Tossing the sheathed weapon to the trainee, he said “Strap the wakizashi to your side, trainee, and unsheath your katana.” He did not explain why, he would teach her that lesson later on. “Now, listen carefully.” He began lecturing, as she did as ordered. “In battle, you will be cut, there is nothing you can do about it. To think you can escape injury is simply foolish. When wielding a katana successfully, you cannot think to block, attack, and block. This is not the sword and shield. The best defence is a good offence, meaning that you must focus on your attacks.”

Watching the girl, he continued. “Watch your opponent, if your opponent does a horizontal strike, choose an offensive strike that will deflect the weapon enough to buy you a few seconds, and adjust your strike accordingly. If you can deflect the strike, think of what other sword forms you can quickly slip into. Deflect the blade with a slash, perhaps you are in a good position to thrust.”

Walking over to the weapons rack, he chooses a katana, one of the weapons he personally favored.

“Black pebbles on snow.” He simply says as he slips into offensive stance. Swinging the sword slightly slower then usual, he lectures “Cutting the clouds, a horizontal strike, can easily be adapted to parry a vertical slash.” From his right, the weapon swings left, and stops, imitating the deflection. “Then, The Falcon Stoops.” Shifting the position of his wrist, he thrusts the blade forward. “Using that variation, some may call Cutting the clouds The Dandelion in the Wind, though that variation takes more finess. You will learn it, over time.”

Raising the blade, he lets the dull edge of the katana rest upon his shoulder, appearing casual.

Turning his back on the girl, the old Asha’man began to pace. “Reflect on what i said, go through the motions, and explain how they feel. Sword forms can be taught by nearly anyone, but sword theory and philosophy, that is something usually learned with time and experience.”

Improvisation

Amayani do Ciresh a'Sorene

Earlier, a smile would have sprung up on her face at the compliment, but today not even a twitch in her lips showed. Instead, all she gave was a nod, her eyes determined, her mind emotionless, and denying. She could not slip up, even for a smile, and she didn't feel like smiling at all. She only felt cold, and distant. Empty.

Shuffling it all aside, she walked over to where she had laid the scabbard and picked it up, sheathing the sword. She eyed the scabbard for a moment, wondering how to strap it to her back as ordered, until she found a way. As she finished strapping it, and looked up, well-trained reflexes served her as the Asha'man tossed another sheathed weapon to her. A quick look at it said it was similar to the sword now on her back, only shorter. She caught the name of it as she looked up at the Asha'man again.

Her ears picked up as he started speaking, and she kept most of her attention on the Asha'man; only a portion of her mind worked on tying the scabbard of the waka... what was it? ...wakazashi to her side and pulled the katana off her back. That took a few tries, but she tried to keep collected as she struggled to get it off.

"The best defence is a good offence, meaning that you must focus on your attacks." Those words resonated in her mind as she finally got the katana into her hands, turning her full attention to the Asha'man. She listened to the Asha'man's words, his lecturing, taking them into her mind.

The man walked over to the weapon rack and picked up a weapon similar to hers. For a short moment she wondered if he intended to have her spar with him, an idea she had a feeling would end badly. For her. It only lasted for a short moment until he started showing her a couple of attacks, giving them the fancy names she had heard certain sword-fighters use. Her previous teacher had not been one of those.

It was a quick display the Asha'man showed her, but she caught what he was showing her, not only the moves themselves, but their uses. She thought she did at least. Raising his blade and resting it on his shoulder, the man began to pace in front of her, telling her to reflect over what he'd said, and put it into motion.

She hadn't thought too much on sword-fighting yet, but some of what he said she could translate to what she had learned of unarmed combat. Blocking and attacking only worked with two hands, where one could block and the other attack at the same time. With the katana - she looked down at the weapon in her hands as she thought - both of her hands were on the weapon, and a block would stop the attack, but it would also stop her progress. A block would initially push her back as she had to retract to attack back.

Though how could an attack be used to fend aside another attack? The weapon in her hands still felt slow to her, meaning that one attack struggled to flow into another. Stopping an ongoing attack would only make her own attack slower, so how could she get in a second attack before the opponent did the same? She would have to deflect an attack with an attack of her own that could flow into another. There was much she needed to learn, she realized.

As her mind worked, her body shifted slightly in accordance to her thoughts, and her hands moved the sword along. Realizing what she was doing, she stopped, her trail of thoughts coming to an end, and cast a quick glance at the Asha'man

She slipped into the basic stance, and decided to go through the same motion as he had shown her first. Raising her sword, she flicked the tip to the right and swung the sword in a horizontal strike, not unlike the one she had done earlier. Though instead of following it all the way through, she tried to picture an incoming vertical attack that her sword met, stopping it in front of her a little to the side. It didn't feel natural, to pretend in this way, but she tried her best. Copying the Asha'man, she twisted her wrist and sent her sword forward in a quick thrust, just as quickly retracting. Returning to the basic stance, she retold her thoughts out loud.

"It feels unnatural, deflecting a pretended attack," she said a bit tentatively; he had told her to say how they felt, "but I can see how it might deflect an attack. The thrust leaves me feeling open," she added, "and it feels slow, but I guess that is my own skills slowing it down?" Biting the inside of her lip slightly, she thought of another attack that could work as defence as well. She knew so little.

"The diagonal attack could be used to deflect a horizontal attack," she said a bit slowly as the thought came into her head, "coming from the left." Raising her sword again, she flicked it into a quick, diagonal thrust starting high left and ending low right, stopping as it crossed in front of her, "deflecting" the pretended attack. "From there it could be turned into a thrust?" her voice was questioning as she thrusted the sword forward. "Or maybe into a horizontal slash," she added, repeating the diagonal slash, and this time twisting the sword around at the end, pulling it back in a horizontal slash.

She shifted back into the basic stance, relaxing her body slightly, and looked at the Asha'man. She hoped she wasn't too far off.

Direct assistance.

Riven Trimak

Nodding, the Asha'man was quite pleased at the Ji'dar's performance. Though much like him, she struggled with imagined opponents. Her footwork seemed fine, experience would improve that. Her breathing was controlled, she did not seem to make the same mistakes some trainees did, breathe rapidly over a little exertion.

"Alright, we shall go over this again, Ji'dar Amayani. This time though, i shall help you." First thing he did though, was walk over to the girl, and with his free hand he gently took her wrist. Rubbing his thumb over the tendons, he said "You hold the weapon too tightly, and use too much force, make it flow naturally."

Stepping to the side, he gripepd his weapon with both hands, and began swinging simple strikes int he air. "The hand near the guard is the pivot, you balance the weapon with that hand. The lower hand, when you swing, you pull, letting the steel flow. Less muscle, more trust in the balance of your weapon. Let it flow, it will take far less energy out of you."

Raising his weapon, the Asha'man faces the Ji'dar. "Ready?" He asks, and with the girls confirmation, his katana flew down. The attack was not too fast, and not all that strong, just enough to make the woman learn the actual sensation of things.

OOC - You hav permission to npc Riven swinging at Amayani. Not in an aggresive way, just passive, to help her learn first hand.

Wrong approach

Amayani do Ciresh a'Sorene

Yani nodded at the Asha'man's words, and watched him as he walked over to her, correcting her stance. She took his words to her, and tried to follow them, easing up the firm grip she had on the handle. Holding it much more loosely, it felt a bit too wobbly at first, but at she held it there it seemed more right. When the Asha'man stepped away from her and started swinging light strikes in the air, she tilted her sword this way and that, small strikes of her own, feeling how the sword handled now.

The Asha'man was right, it did flow more naturally with an easier grip, using the left hand and right wrist to steer the blade. Or not steer, guide it, let it flow. Yes, it did feel more natural.

"Ready?" the Asha'man asked, taking stance in front of her. She felt the grip she had on the sword before nodding, her eyes shifting over to him, watching the man and his sword as he lifted the sword for a strike. Her mind worked overtime, as quickly as it could, trying to think up a way to deflect and strike back, like she had done against the air.

Her body moved on more instinct, her hands bringing the sword up to parry his, her feet taking a defensive step backwards. The swords met, and she just stood there, holding his sword in a lock-still. She could feel the strength in his arms, knowing he could very well force her sword away if he wanted to. Blood ashes. Her mind hadn't worked fast enough; she had over thought the whole thing. Berating herself in her own mind, she looked at the Asha'man, met his eyes and felt shame burn in her face.

"I'm sorry, sir," she said. Bloody ashes, I need to stop trying to think so much!. Waiting for some sort of recognition in his eyes, she eased away from his sword, returning to the stance.

"Again, trainee." The Asha'man said. "Do what feels natural, lose yourself in the movements. Just because you are getting attacked, does not mean you need to block, you can parry. And just because you parry, does not mean you can slip into a defensive position after. Follow your instincts."

"Yes, sir," she replied with a quick nod, the discomfort from earlier replaced with determination once again. She shifted her feet slightly and found her balance. Meeting the man's eyes, she gave a nod indicating she was ready. Don't overthink it, she thought to herself as she watched his movements.

Yet that was exactly what she found herself doing, again, over the next strikes. She tried to anticipate his strike, tried to think up a clever counter-attack, and failed each time. She couldn't find a way to parry his sword, and then turn that into an attack of her own, without giving way for his sword to follow through with the attack. And she simply didn't have the strength to push his sword aside.

Follow your instincts, the Asha'man had said, but all her instincts wanted to do was duck and hide. Stop the sword coming at her, and get away. She parried the next attack, and took a step away, to the side this time instead of backwards. She felt like she was retreating all the time, it made her feel like a coward. But as she stepped to the side, she realized that if she had brought the sword with her, she would be out of range for his sword, but he would be in range for hers.

Maybe she had to move more? She had focused too much on standing her ground and countering the attacks - and failed - and not really thought of dodging instead. She realized the Asha'man had said pretty much that, just in other words.

"Sir?" she said before he started another swing. "I think I know what I do wrong." She eased her stance as she spoke, keeping it but relaxing as best she could at the same time. "I focus too much on stopping the attack, instead of avoiding it. I should probably move more, I don't really have the strength to meet the strike head on. So, dodge the attack, to the side maybe, and strike back from there?" she finished questioningly, and bit the inside of her lip tentatively as she wondered if he had gotten what she meant. She'd just spoken her thoughts out loud, really.

The test!

Riven Trimak

"The very fact that you have taken a good look at your abilities, judged yourself, accepted your own judgement, and are finding a way to grow from the insight speaks a great deal about your maturity as a student, Amayani." The old Asha'man said in respect to his pupil. "What you say can work, dodge, strike, dodge, strike. But, the danger to that, as with every other form is predictability. If you keep dodging to the left, and many do in fact make this mistake, a Blademaster will learn your pattern, and will be able to predict your movements."

In a sudden rush of movement, Riven stepped forward, and his weapon flowed diagonally, from upper left to lower right. As the trainee moved, Riven lectured as he attacked, the words flowing fast and clear. "In some cases, certain sword forms, performed in certain ways can create a situation where the act of dodging becomes very specific." Taking a shard breath, he continued. "Two actions one can do with the strike i just performed, deflect by hitting my blade even further right, potentially compromising my balance, and step to the left, behind the strike, where if you move quickly, you could find yourself in a position to thrust, and earn a kill."

Luckily, the girl had moved properly, moved behind the strike, but had not taken the offensive chance presented. Reversing his strike, the slash became a thrust at her mid section, causing the girl to jump back out of harms way. "A skill fighter can control the pace of battle when needed." Slipping out of offensive stance, Riven slipped into something a bit more casual, blade resting alongside his leg, but with both hands still gripping the weapon. "As you jumped back, there could have been a trench behind you, or a dead body from a comrade. You, Ji'dar Amayani, are defeated."

Seeing the reaction in her eyes, he did not give her a chance to think about it all, did not give her a chance to question him, nor herself. Staring deep into her eyes, he shouts "Attack!"

Lets dance?

Amayani do Ciresh a'Sorene

A younger Yani would have smiled, grinned, and swelled with pride at the praise from the old Asha'man. But not this one, not now. Keeping some emotions away served well in keeping them all distant, and she recieved his words with a respectful nod. She had a feeling this man wasn't one to praise openly and often,and she was grateful of his words.

She still kept her eyes on him and watched for any movements. The years in the Yards had taught her not to dismiss an opponent even if they seemed harmless for the moment. Talk was one way to distract an opponent, letting them drop their guard, leaving themselves open for an attack. She had been at the wrong end of that tactic enough times to know it by now.

Her alertness was rewarded when the Asha'man suddenly moved, his sword coming at her in a diagonal arch. The man was still talking, quite quickly now, and she paid half a mind to his words, the rest of her focusing on avoiding the sword.

The sword came at her from her right, and she threw up her own sword to deflect it, moving to the right at the same time to get behind the sword. Hesitating for a moment, still not having the hang of fluid motion, she caught his words a little too late. Her mind processed them too slowly, catching their meaning just as the sword was thrust against her, causing her to jump away with a half-stifled yelp. She quickly caught her balance again, sword ready, but his next words stopped her movements. Before she could stop herself, she cast a quick glance behind her. It was only a quick glance before she met the man's eyes again, her mouth half opened as her mind tried to form words, but it was all cut short by the look in his eyes and the one word coming out of his mouth.

"Attack!"

For a short moment all she could do was look at him, and then her body responded. Her stance shifted slightly as her feet found better ground, and her hands flexed slightly on the sword as she evaluated her target. She knew she had no way to win against the Asha'man, but at least she could give him a bit of a fight.

Shifting slightly to the right, she moved quickly forward, her sword swinging towards his neck or shoulder. As expected, her sword sung against the metal of his sword, and she retracted just as quickly to get out of range from his sword. Her feet dancing, or stumbling, in quick steps this way and that, she tried to keep her weight on the one that would let her dodge his attack the right way. His sword came at her and she parried it in a quick strike, moving away from him in a quick step.

I can't be defensive, she reminded herself quietly, and went in for another attack, this time moving to the left and forward, striking her sword towards side, belly-height. Her upper body leaned away from him as she struck, causing the attack to barely reach him, even if his own sword hadn't deflected that attack to. She continued the motion to the left, hoping to get around to his side, but the man followed her movements with ease.

The counter-attack that struck towards her send her skipping back another step. She felt that she was getting further and further back, and she didn't like it. But she wasn't an aggressive type, and pushing forward wasn't as favourable in her mind as getting out of harms way. Still, she would definitely lose if she stayed defensive.

Gritting her teeth in determination, she moved forward and swung her sword towards his left shoulder/neck again, moving towards her right at the same time. His sword met hers, the steel giving off a ring, and she twisted her hands, jerking the sword tip slightly away from him and lower, her feet still carrying her to the right and around him. She followed through the second strike, aiming for his side, preparing to jump away if she failed.

Passed the first test.

Riven Trimak

"Bloody..." The Asha'man swore, as his body shifted to the side. The woman had done it, just as he knew she could. The challenge though was surviving her success. Her weapon had deflected his just enough to slide past it, and move into a second strike through the same momentum.

She was fully committed, her practice weapon, though dull, could still seriously harm him. He knew he could not bring his sword to block, he knew there was barely enough room to dodge. The girl had potential, just as he believed. Pushed, and she surpassed mental limitations, and simply acted. Her body moved, when her mind accepted the situation.

Grasping Saidin, Riven wove as fast as he could, delving the practice blade. As the weaves of earth, fire and water sunk in, Riven knew exactly every imperfection of the metal. As the weapon touched the clothing at is side, Riven pushed with Saidin, causing the weapons tip to crack, and fall off as it pushed the clothing against his flesh.

As the woman's weapon passed by, the tip of the practice blade landed right beside his foot. Letting go of Saidin, Riven pivoted on his rear foot, and turned, facing the Ji'dar. Sliding his right foot forward, Riven slipped into a defensive stance. He knew some got lost in battle, becoming creatures of instinct. The girl had shown potential, but he would be ready, just in case she did not stop.

"I underestimated you." He admitted, as he wondered just how far he could push the girl.

Distractions and unfair fighting

Amayani do Ciresh a'Sorene

Yani's first startlement was when the sword reached his side without his sword meeting it. She had expected him to block that attack too, and in the heat of the moment she had put a bit more force behind the swing then intended; she didn't want to hurt her teacher after all.

The second startlement was when the sword didn't impact with his side after all. She had no idea what happened, and her dash broke into a stumble as the tip of her sword broke off against his clothes. The stumble left her open for a quick moment, but she moved into a defensive stance as fast as she could. The counterattack didn't come though.

She realized the Asha'man had taken the same stance, but her eyes kept looking between him and the sword tip, of the lack thereof. Her first thought was as to what kind of clothes did the man actually have on him? Though, as that thought passed, realisation slowly seeped into her mind.

She set a pair of hard blue eyes in the man as he spoke, saying he underestimated her.

"And you cheated," she replied back curtly. The unfairness of his channeling, for she was sure he had done something with the Power to her sword, caused her to lose her usual respect for her superiors. She didn't understand the channeling those in the Tower used, even after all the years she had lived here, but she knew a sword didn't break like that. In a real fight, such advantages were used, sure, but this was a bloody training session!

"I know all is fair in a fight," she spoke on before the man could get a word in, "but this is training fight, in the Training Yards, with weapons only. Sir," she added in the same tone. She was still holding the defensice stance.

Fight me, child.

Riven Trimak

"Child, do you think the Shadow fights that way?" Riven said, scolding her. He knew she was disappointed, the warder Yards held onto honor like an Aes Sedai held onto custom. "A properly trained Asha'man could also have woven a ward, exactly where you stand, where the dirt will turn to mud, let you sink it, then harden. As you were stuck, you would be shocked by lightning. So do not complain, Amayani, absorb, and learn."

Sliding his left leg forward, Riven slid his right a bit more to the side, lowering his height slightly, and giving him a more solid ground to strike. "Next lesson, Ji'dar. Your weapon is damaged, and you are not sure if it could survive another encounter. A strong enough hit could theoretically break through the damaged steel and hit you, not to mention the shards from your broken weapon. In times like this, what do you do? Use your damaged weapon? Or unsheathe your backup weapon?"

He nearly wished he had risked the hit, the practice blade would not have hurt too badly, but he trusted his instincts. He was a survivor, if anything. He was too old to change now. "Come at me, Amayani, and do not hold back. I know you are not familiar with using a broken weapon, or perhaps you will choose your backup blade, but i know you will do fine."

Waiting for the young woman, the wind slowed down, almost like it was waiting. He saw in her eyes potential, Light, she could be a blademaster if she pushed herself! Riven knew he could never reach that goal, he knew his personal limitations. But the Ji'dar, she was young, she had many years ahead of her.

Shorter means faster

Amayani do Ciresh a'Sorene

The flash of anger she'd felt earlier quickly faded, she had never been one to hold on to anger long. His words were quite reasonable, and she knew he spoke true. And she was already doing what he said, absorbing and learning from it. Though how she could fight against something that could change the ground she walked on, she had no idea yet.

Her eyes and mind took in his shift in stance while her ears and mind took in his words. She cast quick glances at the broken sword in her hands, recognizing his words and processing them. Her sword could break with another strike or two at it, and not only that but it was also a potential real danger to the Asha'man, and herself. In a real fight, the broken tip could cause a nasty wound, if it held. She did not want to send the Asha'man off to the Yellows in a practice fight, not for that reason at least.

But wounding her teacher wasn't her main concern with the broken sword; she was more concerned it would shatter further, which would not only possess a danger to herself but also leave her unarmed and defenseless. And as the Asha'man did mention several times, she had a backup weapon strapped to her side.

The Asha'man was waiting for her now, she knew, but he wouldn't let her ponder forever. And she didn't either. Shortly after he stopped talking she shifted the grip on the sword so she held it in her left hand only. She didn't want to throw it away before she had a replacement in hand, as that would leave her open too. She wasn't trained in left-hand fighting, but she could at least block an attack if needed in the short time it took to get the other sword out.

The wakizashi was strapped to her right side, and as she shifted the katana into her left hand she pulled the shorter sword out of the scabbard with her right. Holding it up and ready, she tossed the broken katana to the side and gripped the waki with both hands.

Now what, she thought quickly. This one had a much shorter blade, and thus shorter reach than the katana, and the Asha'man had just gained a bigger advantage over her. His reach had been longer than hers before, but now it was much longer. Well, she would only have to be quicker then.

Shifting her balance slightly again, she never really stood still when she faced her opponent, Yani started to move. She didn't move in for a strike or back away yet, but she started shifting to the side, a bit this way, and a bit the other way. She eyed the older man's movements, wondering how she could reach him now.

Shifting to the right, she moved in for a quite standard attack, meeting his sword and dodging back. She did it both to keep him a bit on his toes, and to get a feel of her new weapon and its reach. It was lighter than the now broken sword, and its reach was shorter indeed. She would have to get a lot closer to him to reach him; the attack she'd tried just then wouldn't have reached him even if he hadn't blocked it.

The Asha'man shifted his position and swung the sword at her from below, causing her to jump back with her legs to avoid getting hit there. She failed to stop his sword, but as he swung the sword back down towards her, she jumped to behind his strike, bringing the waki' up to meet his sword from below, pushing it further away from her, leaving her in a position not unlike the one he had dictated in earlier. This time she didn't hesitate as she tried to twist the parry into a thrust that would aim for his armpit, or thereabouts, since her sword already was that high. She just hoped she'd gotten close enough to reach.

Death stroke

Riven Trimak

Pivoting on his rear leg, Riven both twisted, and pushed back. He felt some pride in the girl, she was good at finding good openings, his suggestion of that specific backup weapon had been sound. But with that lesson taught, there was another she needed to learn. Sadly, she would learn not only with sweat, but with blood.

As her own weapon sought out his side, a perfect strike for a serious wound, Riven reversed his momentum. Instead of using the weapons blade, he brought his hands back, pummel leading. Amayani was shorter, thinner, and would probably one day be faster. For now, she was but a trainee, and Riven an expert.

Moments before her weapon's blade found it's mark, Riven's pummel found it's own. As her weapon brushed against his clothing, his weapon smashed hard into her jaw. Continuing with the momentum, Riven stepped back and slid his feet into a defensive stance. As his arms guided the weapon back to his side, he turned his wrists slightly, and let the edge of the weapon slide gently against the woman's throat as she fell.

A brief moment later, Riven twisted his wrist again, re-angling his weapon.