13th Winter, 512 AV
The two Knights were a blur of motion and a symphony of klacking wood and ringing metal. Neither had an advantage over the other, each attack Arkale launched, his teacher deflected, and each assualt that the Knight mounted the Mage Knight blocked. Arkale was quickly understanding the versatility of Ox, but was very aware that his mentor was holding back; after all, Arkale was only using Ox as per the training agreement, so trying to over come the defense the stance provided would have only been counter productive. The pair continued to exchange blows for another few chimes before the teacher called for a break in the combat.
Arkale dropped his training sword to his side and planted the point into the ground, resting his weight on the handle like a cane. Breathing a little harder than normal, Arkale was thankful for the break, though he knew it would not last and would soon be sparring with the Knight once more, but for now he was thankful for the break.
"What I want to do now, is openly spar. We will each start in the chief ward, Ox, but after that, it is free game. I want to see what you know and how skilled you are at this point." The Mage Knight nodded. It was giving a new student a test to see how much they already knew, what needed to be improved on, and what needed to be taught outright. Essentially it was the Knight trying to gauge how hard he would have to work with Arkale.
With a deep breath, Arkale readied himself once again, taking up the Ox ward. His opponent did the same, and a full chime rang passed before either made a move. The Mage Knight's mind was racing once again, the possibilities were endless, but he wanted to give his mentor the option of stirking first. It never happened though so Arkale was first to strike again.
The young Knight lunged forward, but it was a feint, and with a quick adjustment he pulled himself back and brought the longsword around in an upward arc. The attack was effective, as it caused the Knight to abandon his usless guard, and attempt a backward dodge. The awkwardness of the situation left the mentor off balance and Arkale took the opportunity for a lunge and thrust. The point of the training sword was aimed at the Knight's heart, but it never hit its target. Instead the attack sailed ineffectively through the air. Arkale was rather amazed at the speed of his teacher.
"You need to teach me to move in armor like that." Arkale reminded as he brought his sword back up to guard a rather vicious sideways slash from the Knight, who just grunted in acknowledgement of the statement, but said no more. Instead, he launched a full flurry of attacks at his defending student. Arkale blocked each attack in turn, but was soon finding the speed at which his mentor could deliver the attacks was slowly overshadowing the Mage Knight's speed to defend against them. He needed to do something to gain the upperhand, and being on the defensive was only hurting him. Taking a breath, Arkale decided on a rather tricky tactic. He bided his time for another few strikes, and when the mentor launched a overhand swing, Arkale acted. Instead of blocking the Mage Knight spun on his heel and out of the line of the arc, causing the sword to sail to the ground. During the spin, Arkale hefted the sword into the Ox ward, grabbed the pommel with his right hand, and sent the sword sailing forward. The tip of the training sword connected with his mentor's helmet, but at the same time, the world was turned upside down, and Arkale landed flat on his back, his longsword laying several feet away. After a moment or two, Arkale climbed back to his feet and noticed his mentor was doing the same, although his mentor still had a firm grip on his blade.
"That was foolish." The Knight scolded as he brushed dirt off his legs. "For a few reasons really. Mostly because its risky. If you had missed, the pommel grip would not have allowed you to keep a hold on your sword, and you would have thrown your sword like a spear, leaving you unarmed. Generally you want to avoid throwing away your sword in combat. However, minor drawbacks aside, well done." The Knight retrived Arkale's tossed weapon and put both aside. The two decided that several bells of practice was enough for one day, and Arkale should be back within the next two or three days for another session.
The Knights said their goodbyes, and Arkale headed off towards the Windmount Stables before heading back this his apartment. He looked forward to another round of sparring and learning, though he should probably pick up some literature on longsword tactics. It could not hurt to come with a little knowledge about the art of longswords. |
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