31st Day of Winter, 508 AV
Elias was resolved to decipher the secrets behind the bow, because much to his increasing annoyance, those secrets still completely eluded him. It was frustrating, and like the battle with his mount, it held him hostage in a position of inadequacy. That fact on its own was intolerable enough, yet made even worse still by the prospect of his fellow petitioners and instructors seeing, or even acknowledging him as such. Velen in particular desired of him a greater level of proficiency when it came to the bow and arrow, but she wasn’t the only one who had such high expectation. With several weapons to master in his time as a petitioner, demands came at him from every angle, and when they were not met, recruits were often introduced to the whip and fist until they realized that the beatings would continue until both moral and skill improved.
At times it felt like all he'd be doing for the rest of his life was training with these accursed weapons. The sword, the shield, the bow, and his hands. They considered all of them weapons requisite of a proper warrior and the Caldera couldn’t exactly blame them for that, a well-rounded soldier was a soldier who survived, but it didn’t mean he’d have to enjoy it.
The prospect flexed his bicep and then stretched out his arms and shoulders before grabbing an arrow from his quiver. He focused intently on the target which sat down the range. It was circular with alternating rings of color to denote the various scoring zones. The lovely red center had tantalized him from the start, but he'd had difficulty just managing to make contact with the largest and outermost white ring. Not even a bit of luck had smiled upon him to allow for that fated perfect shot. He'd pray that he was able to change that fortune today, and try as he could to apply his instructors’ lessons to his archery. Combined with his own experiences, he felt like he might just have the slightest, tiniest chance.
The arrow was rough in his grasp; the petitioners weren't offered the highest quality of gear, which he always balked against whenever he got a chance, but it was good enough to serve its purpose he supposed. He needed to be able to hit a target routinely, and for now, that was it. Elias stood at the firing line preparing himself mentally for his upcoming shot. All he needed to do was replicate the form he’d been shown. Looking down at his feet, Elias confirmed that neither of his feet were further up than the next. This would act as his base for his archery. It was simple, but it afforded no wiggle room, either. If he leaned too far forward or too far backwards it would throw off his shot entirely. If he were on uneven ground, he wouldn't stand a chance.
With his stance fully set and planted, he could now focus his attention entirely on the target which awaited him. Or at least he should have been able to do such. Velen had stressed to him the importance of having a constant and fluid drawback motion. If he trained himself in the usage of a bow over and over by repeating the same technique again and again he would be better off for it. Even if he were tired, injured, or just lost in the heat of battle, the training would stick in his muscles, they would remember, and he'd be able to fight without thinking. A useful trick he had come to understand applied for every weapon, his favorite long sword included.
With the arrow ready, Elias brought the bow up, drawing the string back slowly. When his sights were level the ravokian finished pulling. All in all it was a somewhat fluid motion, even though it had a glaring error. His elbow stuck out to the side, which was a reoccurring problem for the proud Caldera lately. This flaw not only added a fair amount of unneeded stress to his arm, but it also threw off his aim to the right. A straight, compact drawback would keep him on target, but the mistake he was making pulled the bow to the right, which only exacerbated the issues he was fighting through.
Still, Elias pushed on to try and settle his gaze on that target, that circular shaped beast which had evaded him and his every shot for so long. Lining up his target, Elias released the arrow, careful not to let the string scrape his face again on the way by. He'd only needed that lesson once.
The bow launched the arrow forth on a trajectory which was set by his form long before he'd even released the string. The projectile forcefully sliced through the air, but Elias could tell from the start that he had missed again. The tip of the arrow impacted with the ground first, after that, he stopped caring where it bounced and skittered to afterwards.
A fantastic start.
At times it felt like all he'd be doing for the rest of his life was training with these accursed weapons. The sword, the shield, the bow, and his hands. They considered all of them weapons requisite of a proper warrior and the Caldera couldn’t exactly blame them for that, a well-rounded soldier was a soldier who survived, but it didn’t mean he’d have to enjoy it.
The prospect flexed his bicep and then stretched out his arms and shoulders before grabbing an arrow from his quiver. He focused intently on the target which sat down the range. It was circular with alternating rings of color to denote the various scoring zones. The lovely red center had tantalized him from the start, but he'd had difficulty just managing to make contact with the largest and outermost white ring. Not even a bit of luck had smiled upon him to allow for that fated perfect shot. He'd pray that he was able to change that fortune today, and try as he could to apply his instructors’ lessons to his archery. Combined with his own experiences, he felt like he might just have the slightest, tiniest chance.
The arrow was rough in his grasp; the petitioners weren't offered the highest quality of gear, which he always balked against whenever he got a chance, but it was good enough to serve its purpose he supposed. He needed to be able to hit a target routinely, and for now, that was it. Elias stood at the firing line preparing himself mentally for his upcoming shot. All he needed to do was replicate the form he’d been shown. Looking down at his feet, Elias confirmed that neither of his feet were further up than the next. This would act as his base for his archery. It was simple, but it afforded no wiggle room, either. If he leaned too far forward or too far backwards it would throw off his shot entirely. If he were on uneven ground, he wouldn't stand a chance.
With his stance fully set and planted, he could now focus his attention entirely on the target which awaited him. Or at least he should have been able to do such. Velen had stressed to him the importance of having a constant and fluid drawback motion. If he trained himself in the usage of a bow over and over by repeating the same technique again and again he would be better off for it. Even if he were tired, injured, or just lost in the heat of battle, the training would stick in his muscles, they would remember, and he'd be able to fight without thinking. A useful trick he had come to understand applied for every weapon, his favorite long sword included.
With the arrow ready, Elias brought the bow up, drawing the string back slowly. When his sights were level the ravokian finished pulling. All in all it was a somewhat fluid motion, even though it had a glaring error. His elbow stuck out to the side, which was a reoccurring problem for the proud Caldera lately. This flaw not only added a fair amount of unneeded stress to his arm, but it also threw off his aim to the right. A straight, compact drawback would keep him on target, but the mistake he was making pulled the bow to the right, which only exacerbated the issues he was fighting through.
Still, Elias pushed on to try and settle his gaze on that target, that circular shaped beast which had evaded him and his every shot for so long. Lining up his target, Elias released the arrow, careful not to let the string scrape his face again on the way by. He'd only needed that lesson once.
The bow launched the arrow forth on a trajectory which was set by his form long before he'd even released the string. The projectile forcefully sliced through the air, but Elias could tell from the start that he had missed again. The tip of the arrow impacted with the ground first, after that, he stopped caring where it bounced and skittered to afterwards.
A fantastic start.
