Featuring Kasamir Arcleht and Alzena Olsen
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"What did I do to deserve you, Kas?"
"Well, for one, you didn't tell me to piss off when I kept bugging you to spar."
"I'm glad I didn't. Plus, it was fun to kick your ass all the time. Always looked so sad when I won. It was kinda cute."
"Oh, 'all the time'? I won plenty of times, you just pack a wallop when you hit."
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Metal clashed with metal, then the ringing ceased.
"As you can see, with but a well-timed feint, you need only move enough outside your opponent's cut to offset it." The instructor, clad in the iconic crimson cape of the Bloodcast, addressed the group of Schilder before him. He stood frozen in action, remaining in the position within which he had delivered the strike upon his partner. "Block with the forte, strike with the foible. Ideally, you should always seek to deliver your cuts as thus, to conserve as much energy as possible."
There was no audible response from any of the Schilder, the lot of them watching attentively, though many through blinking, weary eyes.
"We're going over this again because I'm still seeing many of you abandon the technique the moment your adrenaline takes you." The instructor continued, stepping back and standing to his full height. "This is a fundamental. It needs to be burned into your skull so that you need not even think about it when in the chaos of battle. You mimic the form well when all is calm and you're fresh, but when you're beleaguered, your arms are heavy, and your heart is beating like a drum, I can hardly tell whether any of you have learned anything at all!"
The instructor paused, letting his words sink in.
"In case none of you've figured it out, that's precisely why we've dragged you out here this early. You're going to practice these fundamentals now, and you're not going to stop until you've all collapsed or I'm satisfied that you've taken them to heart." The instructor raised a gauntlet. "You have my permission to bitch, moan, and caterwaul all you want, just so long as you do it while sparring. Now, off! Pair up and practice!"
There was a droning cacophony of unhappy voices as the Schilder all shuffled about, trying to find a familiar face to join up with. One in particular seemed to search with a touch greater enthusiasm than the rest, his green hues flickering like little candles in the dim light of the courtyard.
He weaved between his fellow Schilder, his gaze darting left and right as he scanned their faces for the one he searched for. After a moment, he spotted her, and by the way she turned and locked eyes with him, she had realized she'd been found. Rolling her eyes, which were so very close in color to his, she brushed her long brown ponytail behind her shoulder, but didn't make any attempt to escape his sight.
Approaching, he offered her a wide smile.
"Morning, Alzena!" He greeted her.
"Morning, Kasamir." She replied with a flat voice. "Let me guess, you want me to kick your ass again?"
"Well that's not fair, is it?" Kasamir drew up, crossing his arms with feigned offense. "I won last time."
"Yeah. You won, but I still kicked your ass." Alzena frowned. "Don't you have anyone else to spar with?"
Kasamir shrugged, turning aside as though he was going to walk off.
"I can find someone else, if it's really that much trouble."
"I didn't tell you to do that, idiot." Alzena bit back, yanking her helmet on. "Come on, let's just start before old Bertram chews us out."
With a sly grin, Kasamir did the same, following her over to one of the many sparring circles in the yard. Taking his place opposite her, he raised his feder and fell into guard, at the ready. Alzena did the same, shooting him a fierce look.
"And what in the Void are you smiling about?" She challenged, raising her own shorter, one-handed variant.
"When will you just admit you like sparring with me?" Kasamir replied, taking a step toward her.
"Oh-..Oh, shut up!" Alzena lunged forward, sending a thrust directly at his head.
"Op!" Kasamir yelped, deflecting the point and stepping back, but the woman didn't relent her assault, sending several follow-up cuts at him. He parried the first few before, stepping forward into her guard, he locked the cross-guard of his feder against hers and swung downward, arcing the foible of his blade toward her.
Seeing the on-coming cut, Alzena disengaged, throwing her weight against his guard as she did so, shoving him back so that the point of his feder fell harmlessly an arm's length away. Stepping back, the both of them caught their breath.
"Remember," Kasamir said with a smirk. "We're supposed to be practicing the fundamentals! Don't get carried away."
"Fundamen-?!" Alzena stammered. "Oh, fine!" She pounced once more, sending a wide cut toward his left shoulder.
Raising his feder, Kasamir moved to deflect the cut, but was surprised when he saw her reach out with her free hand, swinging her gauntleted fist at his blade and batting it down. His blade fell, and he felt Alzena's fist fly forward and clutch his gorget. With a shove, she sent him stumbling over her foot, which was locked behind his, so that he flew to the ground.
He had barely enough time to register where he found himself before he felt Alzena's blade swipe across his helmet.
"Owh!" He groaned as the sharp ringing of metal pounded upon his eardrums.
"How's that for your 'fundamentals'." Alzena said, stepping back from him. "Had enough yet?"
"You know you can't lose me that easily." Kasamir shook his head, shoving himself to his feet.
"If only…" She replied with a roll of her eyes, stepping over to take her place again.
"Are you trying to get rid of me?" Kasamir readied his blade.
"Maybe. What's it matter?" Alzena readied hers.
"I can find another partner if you really want me gone that bad."
"Do you want to leave? You sure keep asking if you should."
"Of course not." Kasamir shot her a smile, beginning to inch toward her. "I like it here. You have such a kindly disposition. It makes me all warm and fuzzy."
"Now, I know that's a lie." Alzena frowned at him, stepping aside to circle around him.
Kasamir shrugged. "Don't be so certain." He said, matching her step to prevent her from doing so.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Come a little closer and I'll tell you."
Immediately, Alzena closed the gap between them with wide strides. Kasamir, however, moved at the same time, meeting her in the middle where she directed an upward cut to his right hip. Stepping to the left, he dodged the cut, readying his blade for the downward follow-up toward his shoulder. Kicking off his heel, he stepped off-center, sending a diagonal strike to meet her blade in the middle of its arc. Her blade was batted away by the forte of his feder while the foible landed directly on her dominant shoulder.
"One for me." Kasamir announced with a flourish of his blade, smiling at her.
"Don't get cocky." Alzena retorted. "You're the one who got thrown on his ass, not me."
"Is that a challenge?"
"I would love to see you try."
Again, the two clashed. Both blades met in the air between them. Kasamir reached out with his off-hand, grasping the wrist of her sword arm and dragging their blades down between them. Their shoulders mashed together as they began grappling with one another.
"You know," Kasamir said through clenched teeth as they struggled. "It really-…wasn't a lie."
"What?" Alzena exclaimed with a frustrated huff as she threw her off-hand down and grasped the hilt of his feder, trying to regain control of her own.
"About you. I like-…oof!-…sparring with you." Kasamir shoved her back, attempting to throw her off, but she held on.
"And why-…ergh!-…should I care?" Alzena scoffed, released her off-hand and instead trying to send a punch to the grill of his helmet.
"You, whoa-!" Kasamir threw his head aside to dodge her punch. "You should! There's a-…reason." He twisted the wrist of her sword arm, trying to disarm her.
"Oh, do tell!" Alzena replied with barely-restrained sarcasm, hooking her leg behind his and reaching up with her off-hand to grab the back of his breastplate's neck.
"It's because…well, I-…AH!" Kasamir was cut off as Alzena heaved, dropping all her weight and bending him back over her leg. The two went sprawling to the ground, Alzena rolling onto his sword arm as they did and pinning it down with her knee. Swinging, she brought her blade down and held the dull steel at his neck. Catching her breath, she shot a confident grin down at him.
"Oh, I'm sorry. 'Because,' what?" She asked in a mocking tone.
Kasamir met her eyes, exhaling heavily.
"Because…I'm in love with you."
A moment of silence passed between them. Despite the crashing sound of steel against steel filling the courtyard, it all fell into the background, as though heard in water. Through the grill of her helmet, Kasamir thought he could see a bright red color flushing to Alzena's face. She was frozen in place, her blade still on his neck and her knee still on his arm.
"Alzena." Kasamir said. "Hey, did you hear me?"
A single quiet nod was her answer.
"You're…not mad?"
Alzena shook her head.
"Then, er, want to talk after training? Maybe over breakfast?"
Another nod.
"Okay…Then can maybe you let me up n-"
"Are you two done chatting?!" A loud voice rang out beside them, interrupting him. The two shot up, scrambling to their feet to face the scowling mug of Bertram, the instructor, looming over them.
"Yes, ser! Sorry, ser!" They shouted an apology.
"Good!" Bertram nodded. "Now back to it! And enough with the grappling! We're not practicing that today. If I see one of you on the ground again, you'll be training right through breakfast, get it?!"
"Yes, ser!"
Huffing, the old knight pivoted away, striding off to look for another pair of Schilder to grill into.
Kasamir turned to face Alzena, but she had already moved away to take her place in the sparring circle. Raising a brow, he did the same, but he noted the way she seemed to avoid eye contact with him. He grinned.
"Alzena." Kasamir spoke up as he raised his feder. "You okay?"
Nodding silently, Alzena raised her own.
"Good." Kasamir replied with a small laugh. "My word, Alzena, I never thought I'd see a lioness like you so meek."
"Oh, shut up." Alzena bit back, lunging at him.
*Disclaimer - I'm uncertain if feders specifically are lore-compliant, I just chose to use the term in place of repeatedly saying "training sword" or the like. For all intents and purposes, they're dull, metal training swords.
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