Fanfic:Ubriel's Polearms Training
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Ubriel had been at the Grey Tower for several weeks now. It had become painfully apparent to her that she lacked some basic information on her weapon of choice. It was embarrassing really. She had been throwing the staff around for years and doing great damage to inanimate objects. She had even come out on top in a few altercations against brigands and drunkards. Here, though, at the Tower, she was being challenged to best men and women of skill and sobriety. She was not entirely shameful in her performance, but she felt a deep lack of foundational skill. That is why today she was risking complete public embarrassment to beg a Ji’alantin to be her tutor.
His name was Taylind and she had seen him practicing in the Yards often. She had asked around quietly and discovered that he was probably going to be raised soon. If she was going to approach him for help, it had to be today. There was no way she would dare to just walk up to a full fledged Gaidin. As it was, she had to be practical and crafty. A bribe. That was her plan. It had taken four days of her free time doing chores for other Drin before she had worked up enough good will to gather what she now carried so carefully into the trainee barracks.
Locating Taylind at a table in the common area with three other Ji’alantin, Ubriel approached cautiously. “Ji’alantin Taylind. May I speak with you?” She stood in his line of sight and tried not to fidget.
To her surprise, Taylind stood and excused himself from the group, grinning as he walked to her. “Drin’far’ji? What can I do for you?”
Ubriel held the plate a little higher and lifted one corner of the cloth. “I brought Honey Cakes. I was hoping you would accept them as payment to agree to train me.” Her face felt like it was on fire. Who knew how this looked to the others in the room? From their smirks and giggles, she was imagining rumors being born at every table. If he said yes, it would be worth it.
“Training? You have been asking about my favorite sweets and how soon I might be raised and … ,” He paused and laughed, “You just want me to train you?”
Ubriel was completely dumbfounded for a moment. Then realization dawned on her. He had heard about her snooping and thought she had a crush on him. The fire on her cheeks spread down her neck and across her shoulders. She began to sweat in decidedly uncomfortable places. Her mouth was dry and her tongue was sticking. “Yes please,” she croaked.
Taking the plate from her in one hand and one of the cakes in another, he said, “We can start this afternoon.” Then he saluted her with the cake and went back to his friends. Ubriel grinned so wide she thought her face was going to split open. She ran out to the practice yards to find her friend Pete to tell him the good news.
The first lesson Taylind had given her was actually a very short lecture on what made a stick a quarterstaff. “Yours is a little short. It is supposed to reach here.” He pulled her hand up above her head. The place he indicated was almost a hand taller than her own staff. “That’s fine but you need to know the standards. There is a shorter one that measures about as tall as it’s user called the bo. It’s usually made of a thinner and lighter material than a quarterstaff.”
Ubriel nodded along and tried not to feel as if he had insulted her staff. She had made it herself after all. He continued, “I want you to go to the armory and look through the various polearms there. Make note of at least three different types and then go to the library and research them. I expect a written report on those you choose to be delivered to me by the time we next meet.” Ubriel nodded and was dismissed. She thought she still had time to at least get started on that assignment before her next class started.
Running to the armory and perusing the assortment of polearm weapons on the racks, Ubriel discarded several out of hand. The hooks and broad heads on the halberds and bills were too far from her own experience. It seemed like a leap too far to take right now. The ashandarei seemed like an obvious next step from the staff she had been using for so long. The length was not too much for her to control and the simple curved blade seemed like it should be relatively straightforward in learning its use. “Maybe.”
The next weapon to catch her eye was the spear. There were several examples of different types including some of the short spears the Aiel were known to favor. The one that caught her eye had a shaft that was slightly shorter than her own staff and flattened somewhat so that the broad side of the shaft was on the same plane as the broad side of the blade. The spear blade was just under two hands long. The breadth of the blade was only about as wide as three of her fingers at its widest point. The thing that really caught her attention was that it was sharp along the length of both edges. “That could be useful.”
The last to catch her attention was the pudao. She lifted one from the racks expecting the blade to pull it down in her hands. She found it to be surprisingly counterweighted. The shaft stood slightly taller than her waist height when she planted the butt end on the floor. The blade was much longer than the ashandarei and spear blades. It was only sharp on one edge but she was enamored with it. It was like having a staff that was sharp for half it’s length. She swung it gently in both hands and felt the strangeness of how it sliced through the air. Halfway through, it twisted so that the broadside of the blade began to resist the motion against the air. It twisted and redirected and she found that it made changing direction to swing in the opposite direction somewhat easier. “Oh yes. I like this one.” The Pudao gave her an excitement that she tried to contain. “Maybe I can use it to help transition to sword forms.”
“I think I am going to choose the ashandarei, spear and the pudao. I am already using the quarterstaff.” She hurried back to her quarters to make a note for herself to complete the written portion of the assignment during her next free time. She began mentally composing her essay as she hurried to class. The ashandarei she thought was an elegant slicing weapon that could be used similarly to the staff and spear. She went on listing the reach and versatility of the spear as reasons for choosing it. It could be used as a staff, slashing weapon, stabbing weapon in formations and thrown if necessary. In listing her reasons on the pudao she was afraid she leaned toward the poetical. She saw its usefulness as a staff weapon and it’s reach right away. Her speculation that it could be used as a long reaching sword she balanced with the further speculation that it could be cumbersome without the flexibility of retaining that length if using the shaft in a block or attack became necessary.
Upon finally writing the essay she also listed her own quarterstaff last. She stated, “I am most familiar with the staff and it remains my weapon of choice. I can disable an opponent with much less fear of severely injuring them. It has the same advantage of reach and speed while being useful for both thrusting and blunt attacks.” Adding some of what she had learned from Taylind’s lecture as well as her research she ended with, “It has one major weakness in that it can expose the user’s hands to damage as there is no guard along the length of the shaft to protect them.” She hoped her reasoning and explanations were sufficient as she blotted the page and hurried off to a chore assignment.
At their next lesson, Ubriel brought her quarterstaff and watched carefully as Taylind demonstrated the stances. She had learned the first two in her Unarmed Combat course but the third was new. When he told her to practicing the stances, Ubriel assumed the defensive stance holding her quarterstaff in what felt like a natural posture. Her right hand cradled the forward part of the staff while her left hand gripped the back end of the staff. As she transitioned to the offensive stance, she pushed down and over on the back end of the staff so that the forward end swung slightly left and it landed in the cradle of her left hand. Her right hand turned downward in the process and she slid it backward to grip the back end, now on her right side. She thought her feet took her through those stance changes relatively effortlessly as they were familiar. Taylind corrected her. “Don’t try to step out so far. You are going to leave yourself off balance and open to being pushed over.” To demonstrate, he pushed her over.
Landing with a “Humph,” on top of her staff, she squinted up at him over her shoulder. Rolling over and getting to her feet she didn’t bother to brush the dust off of her uniform before beginning again. After a few transitions, Taylind grinned and said, “Better, now show me the square stance. She first planted her staff in front of her. Lifting her left foot and right hand, she stepped out with her left foot and planted it, bending her knees slightly. She allowed her left hand to slide down the staff as she pulled it upward with her right hand, bringing both out to waist height. The staff lay in the cradle of her right hand. The palm downward grip of her left hand steadied it there. From this position she stepped first into the defensive stance and then into the offensive stance then back into the square stance. Walking through the stances a few more times, she was gratified when Taylind reached out to give her a shove and she did not fall. He smiled. She smiled back.
Taylind stopped her smiling with a new lecture. “Now you have to learn to walk. I expect you to be able to walk forward, back and sideways while always keeping your staff at a correct defensive or offensive position. Do what I do.” He retrieved his own staff and stood beside her. Starting in a standing position, he held the staff in front of him perpendicular to the ground, butt end planted between his feet. “Notice my hands are on opposite sides of the staff. One above the other.”
Ubriel mimicked his standing posture and made adjustments as he called them out. “Loosen your knees, don’t lock them up. Put your shoulders back, warriors do not slouch. And don’t pout.” Ubriel cut her eyes at him before she could stop herself earning a laugh from Taylind. “This is the center grip,” he said, indicating where his hands were placed, “It transitions nicely into any fighting stance.”
“Ok now step out into the offensive stance holding the staff like this. It is called a high guard. Then continue walking forward altering the staff position” He did so and she tried to mimic him. “No, no… Go back to standing.” Taylind showed her once more pointing out how his arms and legs were coordinated in their movement. There was never a point in time when his torso was distressed over trying to follow one or the other in a way that conflicted. “It’s about balance and coordinating movement.”
Ubriel grunted, “Like a dance?” She remembered what her mentor had tried to explain to her when she had first arrived at the Tower.
“Yes! Only more graceful and fully deadly.” Taylind said, demonstrating again.
Ubriel nodded and breathed deeply before stepping out into the movements. She felt slow and cumbersome, trying to remember to move the correct limb in the correct way. Taylind kept telling her to relax and she was beginning to become frustrated. She started thinking to herself that this was a huge mistake. Maybe if she went to the Mistress of Arms and begged forgiveness for having wasted their time, they would let her go. What did a stray Aiel woman know about her future anyway?
Suddenly she became aware of Taylind clapping and saying yes repeatedly. That’s when she misstepped right into her moving staff and tripped landing on one knee. “Well it was right for a minute.” Taylind said and helped her up, instructing her to do it again. Finally she got it right and they spent the rest of the practice session walking through offensive to defensive stances while repositioning the staff in high guard with a center grip.
The next time they met, Taylind bade her show him everything they had practiced thus far. Ubriel didn’t feel like it had been very much but she had practiced it dutifully and Taylind was pleased. He showed her two more steps to practice. The Gathered Step was like walking sideways no matter which way your torso and head were turned. Taylind shuffled his back foot forward to meet the other and then stepped out again with the lead foot. The direction his feet pointed never changed even when he reversed the direction he was moving. Shuffle forward three steps, and back three steps.
Then he showed her the Skirt Step. It was a pivoting movement she had seen used in the Yards during practices before. Taylind moved his back foot forward a half step and allowed his front foot to pivot on its toes so that they still faced forward in front of the back foot. He continued this way until he had actually completed a full circle. Then he reversed and, moving his back foot behind him and pivoting his front foot, he completed another circle in reverse, never moving from the original spot he had begun.
“Now I want you to try both of these forward and backward. At each step I want you to change grips. Stay in high guard but go from center grip to quarter grip and then, on your next step, go back to center grip.” Taylind demonstrated the grip changes, moving his hands down the staff to hold it only by the back quarter and then back up to the center.
Ubriel began to follow his example. He poked and prodded and knocked her over again. He told her to adjust her balance and to hold the front end of the staff higher. Eventually, he was satisfied and he walked through the drills with her. He took her through everything twice before asking her, “Now if you have been paying attention tell me,” he held his staff at a quarter grip and in high guard, “What do you think it is called if I do this?” He pulled up on the back end of the staff allowing the front end to dip down.
Ubriel copied his movements and said, “Low guard?”
Taylind smiled and said, “This one?” He then levelled the staff to almost parallel to the ground.
Ubriel adjusted her staff and tilted her head, “Mid guard?”
Taylind nodded, “Or middle guard but mid guard is good.” He lowered his staff and said, “Practice these. I won’t be able to meet with you tomorrow. But at our next lesson, I will teach you to spar correctly.”
Ubriel stifled the curiosity that almost made her ask why they would miss a day of lessons. Nodding and smiling she bowed and walked away.
When Taylind found her in the practice yard, Ubriel had warmed-up and was pacing herself through the motions they had been practicing. “Good, you are ready to get to work.” Taylind planted himself in front of her offensively and held his staff in high guard. “First we are going to go through some exercises to make the movements feel more natural. For the sake of these exercises, they will be numbered; one at high, two at mid and three at low.” He demonstrated swinging his staff in an arc from high guard and calling out “one”. Then he swung back and called “two” at mid guard and “three” with a sweep from low guard. “As I call them, you will practice meeting me at each. Begin.”
As Taylind began calling the exercises in sequence and then reversing them, he moved a little slower than Ubriel knew he was capable of. She met him awkwardly at first, gaining a feel for the rapid changes in direction and the rebound of each met blow. Then he began to call them faster. After a time, when Ubriel was starting to breath heavier and she was settling into a pattern, he changed the order. The first swing out of sequence was a low sweep that she had expected to be a high arc. When his staff did not meet hers at head height, she felt the momentum of the staff pull her off balance just as his staff wrapped her on the back of her knee. Tumbling to the ground, she rolled over and pulled her staff up just in time to block a tap with his staff that would probably only have left a small bruise.
“Good, now we will mix it up.” Taylind waited for her to get to her feet and set herself at ready. “Begin!” He started by calling a set of three in sequence then called the low sweep again. He was slowing his pace once more for her benefit. He struck her twice more and brought her down once before she started to read his body language before he called the movement. Then he sped up, moving faster and faster until both of them were blurring their staffs. He stopped calling the motions at all and the resounding clack clack of their blows took on a furious tempo.
Calling a rest, Taylind said, “Good, you are learning to read the incoming movements by body language. We will meet each day this week to spar and practice. Meanwhile, you need to spend some time in the library. I want a written report of at least two polearm attacking forms that can be performed starting from each of the three standard guards and which guard is best used to defend against each. If you feel confident you may try any of them against me during our sparring practices.”
Ubriel smiled as the sweat dripped down her face and she nodded. “Thank you, Taylind.” She bowed and ran off to clean up before heading to supper. While sitting in the dining hall with Zacharyn she listened to him talking about all the exercises he was learning and how his classes were going. He was changing from the timid natured young man she had first met, and she could see his excitement over his new ability growing. She shared her excitement over her newfound skills as well and he asked to see them at their next free period. “If you come help me exercise Peach, I will show you what I have learned.”
They finished their meal and walked together to the stable yard. Ubriel put Peach through her paces in the horse’s obstacle course; jumps and barrel turns and long straight stretches. “I promise to take you out on a proper ride soon.” she said to the horse, rubbing her muzzle, “I just have to get permission.” Ubriel turned the reins over to Zacharyn so that he could brush her out while she showed him all of her practice exercises. “And then he started showing me these practice spar exercises today.” She tried to go through them smoothly the way Taylind had. She got through them but not necessarily smoothly. “That’s why I have to go to the library. I have to find descriptions and names of forms. Can you come with me?”
Zacharyn agreed and together they went to study in the library. They each found several books related to the subjects they were studying and sat quietly on opposite sides of the table. It was one of the things Ubriel liked best about Zacharyn. They could just sit together without talking and never feel an uncomfortable need to break the silence. Ubriel smiled to herself thinking about it as she began to read. The smile faded as her concentration on what she was reading blocked out everything else.
In a thin book about the size of her two hands together she found what she was looking for. There were pictures and descriptions. Names of forms and their variations filled each page. Some even had a few forms described in sequence; attacks and counter-attacks, blocks and evasions. She began her assignment citing Polearm Forms by Ashfalcon. She read through the first few pages making note of a few forms that she envisioned as being particularly useful. Then she wrote out the forms she chose for her assignment.
Climbing the Mountain begins in low guard. Sweeping upward diagonally, it is best met with a mid guard.
The Windmill Turns begins in a low guard. It sweeps evenly to catch your opponent below the knee. A low guard is best against this attack.
The Falcon Dives begins in high guard. It falls diagonally and is best met with a mid guard.
The Hammer Falls begins in a high guard and is best met with a reverse high guard.
The Heron’s Wing begins in mid guard. It sweeps out at the torso of the opponent and is best met with a mid guard.
Closing the Shutters begins in a mid guard. It advances from two sides and is best not met with a guard but with a counter attack.
Having made her list and even tried to learn to execute some of them, Ubriel was full of anticipation for her sparring match with Taylind that afternoon. They had been sparring daily for six days and she felt that she was beginning to show improvement. She had worked blisters into her old calluses and new calluses were replacing them. She was thinking about how to work a few of the forms she had chosen into a series that Taylind wouldn’t see coming when he was suddenly there behind her tapping her shoulder with his staff. Hard.
Spinning around, Ubriel ducked low and brought her staff up to meet a second meaningful tap. “Good afternoon, Taylind.” She jumped back and swept her staff toward his ankles. He jumped the sweep and twirled his staff above his head and down toward hers.
She raised her staff in a quarter grip, bending her elbows back to the right side of her head and levered his blow away from her. “You will have to tap me at least as hard before we stop.” Taylind said, “Never let anyone sneak up on you, especially when you know they are coming.”
Ubriel followed through her block with an attack that made use of the force of his blow, sending her staff in an arcing sweep to his knees. He pulled back away from her in a quick reversal and made a tiny circling motion with the leading end of his staff. This put his staff behind hers and he pushed the end of her staff through it’s swing. He used the opening this created and tapped her again, this time behind her knees. “Now you owe me two taps.”
Ubriel decided it was time to try out a couple of her new form sequences. She danced backward in The Heron’s Wing, making a complete turn and swinging her staff out to push Taylind back. Catching her staff in both hands again, Ubriel began to advance in Closing the Shutters making a small cry of warning at each advance. This had the effect of pushing Taylind back until he decided he knew what move she was making next. As he positioned himself to begin a new attack, she followed through with the same beginning motion into The WIndmill Turns landing a blow on Taylind’s shoulder and she side-stepped into The Falcon Dives sweeping Taylind’s feet out from under him and landing him on his back.
Ubriel stopped at the last moment in Dropping the Hammer with her staff poised above Taylind’s diaphragm. Completing that attack could well have killed him. Dropping her staff to the ground beside her, she held a hand out to Taylind to help him up. Taylind’s broad smile reassured her as he stood facing her. “Well done! I see you have been diligently studying in the library.”
Ubriel smiled back and said, “Yes and it was that sequence that I was rehearsing in my head when you found me today.”
Taylind nodded, “Well try to rehearse these sequences in your head with your eyes open from now on.” They both laughed and brushed the dust from themselves. “Let me see your list.” Ubriel handed it to him and he scanned through. “Good, these are some very versatile and useful forms to practice. They are a good place to start to learn to defend as well. Today, I will attack using combinations of these forms and you will defend.” Taylind folded the papers and tucked them into his pocket and assumed an offensive stance. “Begin!”
He pressed her hard that day and for the few days that followed. They took turns using the forms to attack and defending against them. Taylind encouraged her to try variations when they seemed appropriate and was pleased with her when she landed a blow. He began encouraging her to use follow-through blows with her fists, elbows, knees, shoulders; any part of her that could be used to cause a damaging blow. By the next week, they were incorporating pole assisted leaps into their attacks and occasionally they would attract onlookers to watch them spar.
Taylind met her in the practice yard one day carrying the weapons she had chosen out during her first assignment. “Ubriel, this is Madin and Nyhla,” he said pointing to the two ji’alantin who arrived with him. They have agreed to help us with the rest of your training in polearms. He handed the pudao to Nyhla and a spear to Madin. He kept the ashandarei and instructed her to continue to use her quarterstaff.
“So far we have used only the quarterstaff with little or no distinction between which end we use and which plane of attack is used. When you add a blade to the end of the stick, things become a little more formal.” Taylind instructed Nyhla and Madin to begin going through some slow and basic exercises. “Swing as if they were just quarterstaffs so that we can see what would happen.” His two assistants began and Ubriel understood immediately. As they swung at each other, the blades sometimes were on the wrong side of the swing and other times landed flat against the opposing staff. A few times the sharp side of the pudao blade would have sliced into the flesh of Nyhla’s hand had she not been wearing protective guantlets.
“Now, mind the blades,” Taylind instructed after a time. The two assistants began again and this time, they moved with more precision and care. Nyhla used far fewer reversed grips and swung the pudao with longer arcs and more like a sword. Madin still used just as many reversed grips but his hands always seemed to find a position so that the palm of his hands were flat against the broader side of the flattened shaft of the spear. This had the effect of keeping the sharpened sides of the blade in the leading edge of his attacks. Ubriel nodded.
Taylind said, “Our two helpers are going to go get a practice dummy for you to work against. Then you are going to begin training with each of the weapons you chose.” Nyhla and Madin handed the weapons back to Taylind and ran off to retrieve the dummy. “For the next six days, you are going to spend your lesson time using all four of these weapons going through every practice exercise and form that you have learned. Then we will wear excessive amounts of padding and spar with bladed polearms.” The wicked grin on Taylind’s face made Ubriel slightly apprehensive but at the same time she knew her eyes were sparkling with anticipation.
She found during her practice that she felt much more comfortable with the spear. It was easier to tell from the shape of the shaft which direction the blade was turned and that let her concentrate her eyes on her precision of attack. The pudao was the most difficult to work with. It was the most different from anything she was accustomed to and she had never swung a sword. By the end of her sixth day of practice, she had mastered a few forms of attack with each weapon and was looking forward to the next sparring practice.
To her surprise, Madin and Nyhla again accompanied Taylind to the practice yard. They were each carrying a quarterstaff and another polearm. The one Nyhla carried was a wicked looking broad headed thing with two points in the front and a hook curving off of the back. Ubriel made a note to herself to stay as far from that as possible. “So we are going to start by padding up. For safety, we are not going to aim at each other’s heads as even the most skilled Yellow sister can not heal death.” He grinned and helped her get suited up. She felt quite silly in the padded jacket and helmet. “Now,” Taylind said, “Madin and Nyhla are going to start off with quarterstaves and I will use an ashandarei…”
Ubriel squeaked, “You want me to spar all three of you at once?”
Taylind nodded. “If you will be so kind as to let me finish instructing you, your goal is to get us all on the same side of you and if you can tap just one of us after we are all on the same side, you win the spar. Remember, we are all coming after you. Use that to your advantage.”
Ubriel was dubious. She was of a mind to curl up with her head between her knees and refuse to play anymore. Then they were advancing. She put her back to the space between Madin and Taylind and advanced on Nyhla. Ubriel feinted an attack on Nyhla’s left with the butt of her staff which Nyhla threw her quarterstaff up to block. Ubriel instead pulled the staff around and turned in a pivot that resembled a Heron form. This brought the front end of her staff around to meet Madin on his shoulder. As she had stepped out of the encircling teachers when she pivoted, Taylind declared her victorious and Ubriel grinned proudly.
Her next attempt was not successful and once all three of the teachers withdrew their weapons from pointing at her exposed belly, Nyhla helped her up from the ground. She won two more spars then Taylind made them change weapons. Ubriel chose a spear next as did Madin. Nyhla kept her quarterstaff and Taylind declared the same rules as before. Ubriel used a sweeping defense to harrass the feet of the two closest to her and leave their circle this time. She had finally realized what Taylind’s hint meant. Wherever she went in the spar, they would follow. As soon as she escaped the circle, she began a wide movement making them follow her until finally she used the shaft of the spear to help spring her forward, then she tucked and rolled to the side, bringing the edge of her spear up sharply at an angle to Madin’s lower leg as she rolled past.
Nyhla switched to the wicked looking bill and Ubriel changed to the pudao. Nyhla smiled at the look Ubriel gave the bill, “Don’t worry. I promise not to hurt you too badly.” Taylind tried to smile with encouragement but Ubriel didn’t see. She was distracted by Madin’s laughter. Taylind bade them begin and Ubriel tried to distance herself from the bill, swinging the pudao toward Nyhla’s middle as if she were batting the dust from a carpet. Taylind took advantage of her obvious discomfort and distraction and swept her feet from beneath her.
Helping her to her feet, Taylind said, “You are letting the look of a weapon distract you from what you know to be true about fighting. No matter how intimidating the shape of the blade is, the principle is the same. It can’t hurt you if you don’t let it touch you. Don’t let it distract you from the rest of the dangers in the fight.”
Ubriel nodded and took a deep breath. A look of determination set on her face, she said, “I’m ready.” They took up their positions again and this time Ubriel charged a ferocious attack at Madin, sweeping his spear aside and using it to block Nyhla as she advanced. Stepping into her block, she rammed her shoulder against Madin, continuing a turn to face Taylind as he advanced. She pulled the pudao up in a reversed high guard and cursed that the length of the haft was not quite long enough to make an obstacle to trip Taylind. His thrusting attack hit the butt end of her haft instead and she side-stepped as she pulled the blade back down in Dropping the Hammer. Her blow landed on his padded arm and she was firmly outside of the circle of attack.
“Well done!” Taylind commended. “That is it. Other than practicing and studying more forms, you have finished learning how to use polearms.”
“Am I an expert now?” Ubriel grinned.
“Well, you are at least competent. Particularly with a quarterstaff, but even with that pudao you have demonstrated enough skill to hold your own in a fight.” Taylind clapped her on her shoulder and Madin and Nyhla joined them to congratulate her. Later that evening, sitting astride Peach as the horse grazed in a pasture, Ubriel pulled the book of Polearm Forms by Ashfalcon from her pocket. She said, “Peach, I still have work to do.” She opened the book and began to read.
