The fourth day of summer, 514 AV
The sun beat down upon the training grounds, soaking those below in sweat. A beads of moisture traveled down Wynn's face, pooling in the divots between his neck and shoulder, his mail a veritable furnace fueled by the ruthless gaze of Syna above. His gauntlets creaked as he tightened his grip on the haft of his axe, bending his knees with an even louder protest from the protective armor about his knees. Before him stood Ser Titus Maximus, his hammer drawn, and his smile a seething mix of amusement and anticipation. Shaking his head to fight back against the endless rivulets of sweat that ran down his face and neck, Wynn flexed his legs for half a moment before charging forward with a slash at his opponent.
For a moment, it seemed as though the axe would land directly in the center of Ser Maximus's skull. A quarter of a breath's time passed during which Wynn considered shifting his aim so as not to lethally wound the knight. A blink later Ser Maximus had raised his great hammer as easily as a stick, slamming the pole of his hammer against the haft of Wynn's axe. The reverberation and recoil sent Wynn stumbling backwards; his hands felt as though a thousand bees had delivered their dying gifts directly into his nerves. He let out a shout of surprise, though his grip remained firm upon the axe - if for no other reason than he could not move a single digit. The other knight, wasting no time, advanced, lowering his hammer to trail behind his left side as he let out a fierce explosion of sound from within his massive lungs.
Letting the axe fall to the ground in front of him, Wynn used it to stabilize himself, finding it hard to focus with the panic rising from the impending battering that was charging in his direction. With the head of the axe already planted in the soft dirt, Wynn bent his knees to get a better hold of the weapon with both hands, grunting with the effort to raise the weapon as Ser Maximus swung his hammer in a diagonal upwards arc. Placing both hands far apart, Wynn drew the haft of his weapon up in a block against the hammer's swing. The handle connected with the haft as it had done before, but the sheer force of power behind Ser Maximus's swing slammed the haft into Wynn's armor with a powerful crunch of metal before his body was launched off of the ground to land a few feet behind where he'd been standing. Smashing into the dirt with a heavy thud, Wynn felt the air rush out of his lungs. The world flashed a perfect, terrifying black for a moment before the light returned, allowing him to once more see the bright blue of the Syliran summer sky.
"Well shyke, squire!" Ser Maximus's booming voice thundered down from somewhere over head. Wynn let out a groan that mixed with a body shaking cough that alerted him to the several hundred new bruises that had already begun to form over every inch of his body. "I got a little carried away back there. You alright?" Despite the knight's gruff exterior, Ser Maximus was not the sort of man to take pleasure in the pain and suffering of those weaker than him - even if he caused the pain and suffering in the first place. Blinking several more times, Wynn was able to fight back against his daze long enough to twitch out a nod that he was, indeed, "alright".
There was a sudden darkening of the sky, allowing Wynn to gaze up at the weathered face of his instructor. There was genuine worry upon it now as Ser Maximus's eyes perused the wreck that lay upon the ground. "Are you sure? You look a little battered." Deciding he'd been lying on the ground for long enough, Wynn pushed himself up, immediately regretting the sudden change in elevation as his head began to pound. Wincing, he leaned forward, resting his head in his hands and shutting his eyes, as if cutting off his vision would somehow alleviate the pain in his head. "I'm ok..." His voice came out shaky and garbled as it trickled out from the mass of armor. He felt Ser Maximus place a hand on his shoulder. "What do you say we take a little breather, huh?" Wynn gave another, tender nod of his head.
For a moment, it seemed as though the axe would land directly in the center of Ser Maximus's skull. A quarter of a breath's time passed during which Wynn considered shifting his aim so as not to lethally wound the knight. A blink later Ser Maximus had raised his great hammer as easily as a stick, slamming the pole of his hammer against the haft of Wynn's axe. The reverberation and recoil sent Wynn stumbling backwards; his hands felt as though a thousand bees had delivered their dying gifts directly into his nerves. He let out a shout of surprise, though his grip remained firm upon the axe - if for no other reason than he could not move a single digit. The other knight, wasting no time, advanced, lowering his hammer to trail behind his left side as he let out a fierce explosion of sound from within his massive lungs.
Letting the axe fall to the ground in front of him, Wynn used it to stabilize himself, finding it hard to focus with the panic rising from the impending battering that was charging in his direction. With the head of the axe already planted in the soft dirt, Wynn bent his knees to get a better hold of the weapon with both hands, grunting with the effort to raise the weapon as Ser Maximus swung his hammer in a diagonal upwards arc. Placing both hands far apart, Wynn drew the haft of his weapon up in a block against the hammer's swing. The handle connected with the haft as it had done before, but the sheer force of power behind Ser Maximus's swing slammed the haft into Wynn's armor with a powerful crunch of metal before his body was launched off of the ground to land a few feet behind where he'd been standing. Smashing into the dirt with a heavy thud, Wynn felt the air rush out of his lungs. The world flashed a perfect, terrifying black for a moment before the light returned, allowing him to once more see the bright blue of the Syliran summer sky.
"Well shyke, squire!" Ser Maximus's booming voice thundered down from somewhere over head. Wynn let out a groan that mixed with a body shaking cough that alerted him to the several hundred new bruises that had already begun to form over every inch of his body. "I got a little carried away back there. You alright?" Despite the knight's gruff exterior, Ser Maximus was not the sort of man to take pleasure in the pain and suffering of those weaker than him - even if he caused the pain and suffering in the first place. Blinking several more times, Wynn was able to fight back against his daze long enough to twitch out a nod that he was, indeed, "alright".
There was a sudden darkening of the sky, allowing Wynn to gaze up at the weathered face of his instructor. There was genuine worry upon it now as Ser Maximus's eyes perused the wreck that lay upon the ground. "Are you sure? You look a little battered." Deciding he'd been lying on the ground for long enough, Wynn pushed himself up, immediately regretting the sudden change in elevation as his head began to pound. Wincing, he leaned forward, resting his head in his hands and shutting his eyes, as if cutting off his vision would somehow alleviate the pain in his head. "I'm ok..." His voice came out shaky and garbled as it trickled out from the mass of armor. He felt Ser Maximus place a hand on his shoulder. "What do you say we take a little breather, huh?" Wynn gave another, tender nod of his head.
