Swords 101

[rememberher]

Who: Lux Crownguard, and you!
Where: The Hall of Glory
When: Back-dated to early-to-mid September
What: A new weapon means learning a new way to fight.
Rating: PG probably? idk

[ Knees bent, feet at shoulders width, posture relaxed yet at the ready.

Repeating that mantra in her head, she moved swiftly, the gems on her bracelet the only light shining through the early morning darkness. Her breaths coming in gentle puffs, made visible by the cool autumn air, she moved through each training dummy with ease, practically dancing as she moved, and leaving yet more light in her wake.

Knees bent, feet at shoulders width, posture relaxed yet at the ready.

And with each one she passed, they began to glow, telling where she had been, where she had struck, bathing them in faint, golden light. Marking them. But with what? Perhaps the gently glowing form of what looked to be the hilt of a sword might have something to do with it.

Then all at once, she would dart away, quick on her feet (quicker than she might appear, as if someone had been training her, teaching her how she should move), casting out her left hand and— ]

Fosopye!

[ Prismatic light blossoming from the palm of her hand, it shattered into shards of iridescent glass, flying at each marked training dummy and imbedding themselves before detonating her golden mark.

Knees bent, feet at shoulders width, posture relaxed yet at the ready.

They were going to need more dummies at this rate. ]


[[Brackets or prose, doesn't matter to me. I'll match styles regardless.]]

Comments

[chronosynthesis]

[Lux had requested Syrlya's assistance with her swords forms, but he hadn't expected her so early. The glow under his skin is still pulsing a steady teal at the hour.

So he's a little late, stifling a yawn as he approaches. His new longsword hangs at his side in a new leather sheathe, ands he just finishes buttoning up his uniform jacket as he reaches her with a smile.] I see you're hard at work already.

[rememberher]

[ Hearing the familiar voice, Lux turned to greet him, an interesting mask obscuring part of her face. ]

Syrlya, good mor—

[ She stopped mid-sentence, pausing for a moment before taking the mask off. Wait, was he actually glowing? ]

[chronosynthesis]

Good morning. [He sees her staring, but he doesn't quite register what for.] That is a nice mask.

[rememberher]

[ And knowing that it was impolite to stare, she tries very hard not to. Unfortunately, it would seem that she isn't doing a very good job. ]

Ah, thank you. It was a gift actually.

[ Oh, she was dying to ask, but it would be so incredibly nosy. Also, how does one even ask something like that? "I noticed you're a bit brighter than usual, care to tell me why?" ]

[chronosynthesis]

Oh, really? It's lovely. [Syrlya leans a little closer to see, still a respectful distance but close enough to better see the details.] Is it armor or simply accessory? Did you receive it with those heartfelt letters?

[fuhrinkaed]

[Ed's tagging along to practice his own form and act as a sparring partner if Lux needs one. Really what this has amounted to thus far is grabbing additional dummies and the like as necessary and setting them up, while going through is own exercises with his scimitar.]

[Still, that attack is totally cool, and it gets him to pause to pump an arm when she does the finisher.]

That's super awesome, Lux! You mark them, and then you follow up with a finisher. With the right technique, that's super powerful.

[rememberher]

[ Even that much was appreciated, with how quickly Lux was burning through her targets, sometimes nearly literally. And at that praise, the blond turned toward him, smiling somewhat sheepishly as he pumped his arm in the air.

Really, Ed? ]

That's the hope at least. But I can't help but feel like I could move through them a bit faster. I'm not quite sure what I'm missing, I'm following the diagrams to a T.

[ Because of course she's been burying herself in sword technique books. ]

[fuhrinkaed]

Mmm... It could be because you're lacking in real experience? A lot of times I'd get taught something myself, and I could do it but I couldn't figure out how to apply it into a fight until I actually got up and got scrapping with people. Having someone there trying to stop you from doing what you're doing is a good way for your body to get better at doing it, too.

Iunno, that's just how I think. You might also just need to loosen up some?

[rememberher]

Really? Do I seem tense?

[ It was hard for her to tell, not being nearly as seasoned with a sword as others here. But blinking a few times, she hummed gently in thought, looking somewhat troubled. ]

I haven't had the chance to fight much of anything, outside of the training dummies here, so I suppose I can see your point. Nothing replaced actual experience, and I don't want to be a burden on the battlefield.

[fuhrinkaed]

Well then... How about this?

[He stands up, grabbing a practice sword and swinging it in a quick test.]

We'll go slowly through the forms, and we'll speed them up. I'll try slowly attacking and you'll slowly fend me off. We'll speed it up over time, if you want. I'm pretty tough, so a couple explosions should be fine if we heal in between.

[youknowshesgone]

Seemed someone else was out here practicing with a new weapon.

Willa watched from her spot against the wall, scarf drawn up over her head like a hood. The charms and magic of the legendary item masking her signature. She wasn't invisible, exactly, she just wasn't very interesting to look at. Anyone wandering in or out would have to basically trip over her to want to see her. Even then an eyewitness account wouldn't have much detail. If people saw her was a question of how detail oriented they were, how much focus they could give. Maybe Lux felt like she was being watched, maybe she was too focused on training.

Sadly Willa was figuring out all the limits on her new weapon, as much as it was one. Once she felt like she was on day three without coffee or sleep she knew it was time to take off the scarf, before she collapsed. That was embarrassing. All at once the charm ended and standing, watching with a mask of disinterest, was a blonde teenager. Who smiled, nothing innately sinister in the act but it definitely was not 'friendly.'

[rememberher]

And she did in fact, added only by the fact that it seemed like, if she looked just right, she could see something out of the corner of her vision that wasn't supposed to be there. Winter Moon's mask placed delicately over her eyes, she could see the gossamer strands of mana that made up everything around her, and while she was still trying to get used to it, Lux couldn't shake that feeling that there was a thread missing. One that almost seemed to appear for just a split second before falling away.

It perturbed her, and ready to call out, to question who was there, someone quite literally appeared as if out of nowhere. It took every bit of willpower out of her to keep from launching a spell, an incantation playing at her lips.

So instead, the other blond simply sighed, somewhat impatiently, casting Willa a very tired and somewhat displeased look. "If you plan on using illusions on the training grounds like that, please try not to be so secretive about it." She frowned, placing her weight on one side. "Directing something like that at another hero, they might think you're an enemy."

[youknowshesgone]

At some point taunting the magically gifted heroes will backfire, on the other hand Willa really doesn't see the big deal. She was given this stupid scarf, and she wasn't expected to use it. And there were a lot of people, was she expected to carry a sign. One which, by the way, nobody could read while she had her scarf on.

"What illusions? I haven't figured out how to do any of this nonsense magic." She knew exactly what her scarf did. But honestly feigning ignorance just seemed like the play. It went well with the genuine bitterness of being in this stupid world. "And if someone got this close with some illusions we'd all be in trouble."

[rememberher]

The big deal was sneaking up on others. Learning one's limits was all well and good, but using that against your fellow heroes was somewhat suspect.

"Then if it wasn't an illusion," She mused, sheathing her sword and taking a few steps closer, "Then how was I unable to see you?" What was the trick, she had to know.

[youknowshesgone]

You read a lot into a girl standing by a wall, you know that?

"No idea. Maybe you're just not paying attention." Even if Willa did know, which she didn't in this one case, she wouldn't share that sort of secret. She knew the effect, but the cause was all up in the air. "No idea what to tell you."

[shewhocompels]

Teyud had never been much of a morning person, but she was too much of a professional to let that make her ignore morning training. She hadn't expected to see Lux here, though, who she had had pegged as more of the hands off type.

Her curiosity got the best of her. A little bit of light sarcasm would disguise it, perhaps.

"It is encouraging to know that, should we be attacked by wooden training mannequins, you shall be well prepared."

[rememberher]

Hearing a familiar voice, the blond stopped mid-spell, her left hand lowering gently as she turned. A curious mask obscuring part of her face, Teyud may still be able to tell that the much smaller blond was smiling, quite playfully.

"And should Noir come at us with biting sarcasm, I'm glad to know at least one of us will be ready to meet them, quip for quip."

Sheathing her sword at her side, the light from her bracelet dimming, Lux walked toward the other woman, her expression smoothing into something more cheerful. "Good morning, Teyud."

[shewhocompels]

She chuckled and nodded slightly, pleased that she had retaliated to the sarcasm rather than just getting indignant, as so many humans did.

"Good morning Luxanna."

Teyud shifted her gaze from Lux to the poor, battered training dummies. "I did not realize you were interested in the use of long blades."

[rememberher]

At that, the blond smiled somewhat sheepishly, her shoulders shrugging up gently. "I wasn't, at least not at first." She started, looking to the side as she thought of the proper words.

"My staff shattered during the battle in Gammon, and I needed a replacement weapon. But with my other weapon—" She held up her left hand, a glowing bracelet resting on her wrist, "A staff always felt awkward to use. A friend suggested I might try a sword instead."

[footfalls]

[This isn't the first time Lenalee's run across someone else in the training area at this hour, but she pauses on account of it being someone she recognizes, instead of immediately heading off to a corner of her own to practice. She lingers, watching Lux with an expression of awe, making sure not to disrupt Lux until the end of that second attack. rip dummies...]

Are you training with your weapon, Lux?

[it was probably a weapon, but Lenalee's seen some students do amazing things with their magic, so maybe Lux was at the tier where she could easily do this with will and mana alone. either way, that was pretty impressive]

[rememberher]

[ Normally Lux would be one of the only people on the training grounds, but with her schedule hedging toward late evenings, most mornings she found it hard to get out of bed in time to utilize the space. But ever since receiving her new weapon, it sparked a fire under her and, practically dancing under the light of the moons, she fought like a woman possessed. Even if her movements were still somewhat awkward, they were dangerous and strong, moving between each wooden dummy with relative ease and tagging it with light.

Finishing with a simple light spell and splintering her targets, the little Queen stopped, turning toward the voice. A peculiar mask obscuring part of her face, she still smiled, her breath coming out in brief huffs. ]

Lenalee, good morning.

[ The light emanating from her bracelet dulled, and she made her way toward the other girl sheathing her sword at her side. ]

I am. I just got it, and I'm still trying to get a feel for it. Are you here to train too? I'm not used to seeing anyone else up this early.

[footfalls]

Yes...

[Lenalee starts as Lux approaches, then trails off once she gets a better look at the other girl. more importantly, at the mask adorning Lux's face. it's different, but it looks very similar, and for a moment Lenalee's gaze is arrested by the sight of it... before finally coming back down to earth.]

I mean, yes. I woke up early today and I couldn't fall back asleep, so I thought I might as well...

[she pauses,]

That mask -- is it a part of your weapon?

w h e l p

[rememberher]

At least you won't have to fight for space, right? It can get pretty lively here during the day.

[ Another reason why she preferred these early hours, outside of pure habit. Ever the perfectionist, she hated the idea of her fellow heroes seeing her struggle, or missing a step.

Noticing the look, she lifted the mask, blinking a few times, still smiling but curiously now. The pause, however... ]

No, nothing like that. It's... almost like an enchanted piece of armor, created through synthesis, and part of a set. A cloak and mask.

[ And taking it off, she offered the item to Lenalee, should she wish to take a better look. Mana-infused wood the core of this item, there was something else there, the course of mana from someone the other girl might recognize, gentle yet fierce—featherlight. ]

They were a gift, from someone very dear to me.

[impulsives]

[ Ah, he's not the only one here this morning, it seemed. Though, then again, Shinn always does morning laps compared to actual weapon training, and it just happened that he'd pass by Lux. Her movement's pretty good, and it seemed that she's deep in concentration right now, so it'd be bad to disturb her.

So he just quietly watched her train for a bit, before piping up after he's sure that she's done with a training dummy. ]

...Not bad.

[rememberher]

[ Popping one last dummy with a spell, the light from the hilt of her blade fades, the blond exhaling deeply. All right. ]

Ah?

[ Wait, someone else was there? Turning suddenly, blinking in surprise, she smiled somewhat awkwardly. Ahaha, how long have you been here? ]

Thank you.