Training in the sun (Closed)

[Nex Paciscor]

60th of Summer, 511 AV

The stone felt cool under his bare foot, and concentrating on the movement, he hopped forward to plant his left foot on another stone, carefully placed there. He had constructed the obstacle course yesterday to train his body and test his limits, and this was his first trial run. Tensing up the muscles in his legs, he jumped again to land on the next stone with his right foot, and leapt almost immediately after his foot had firmly planted onto the next stone, moving from rock to rock. As if the small, barely a foot in diameter rocks weren’t enough of a test, a large pool of water awaited before him, breaking his trail and the branch that arched high over the water was his only means of getting across. He had made it that way specifically to target the muscles in his legs, and help it become easier for him to dodge and roll. The value would be of course for combat, where it would become very useful, and so he jumped for the branch. His body pressed through the simple expanse of air almost gliding for a moment with his hands raised high above his head, and just as he started plummeting for the calm waters of the small pond his hands slapped against the rough bark of the tree limb and held tight, swinging his weight forward before releasing and letting his momentum carry himself to the other side of the water. His feet tumbled from underneath him as they met the wet earth, and he fell backwards into the muddy water.

A flash of water bubbled up around him as he raised his head from the water, and he stood up from the pool, and spit out the sour brown water. Sighing he decided he would have to start all over and jogged back over to the rocks at the start, wiping off his feet on the green grass, and then planting a foot on the first rock. Leaping he continued his way from rock to rock, his muscles compensating for each time they touched the smooth stones, and the branch soon loomed before him. His pulse quickened as he approached the jump, and suddenly he was in the air again, reaching for the distant tree branch that was zooming towards him. A smack off flesh sounded as he grabbed the strong limb, and shifted his weight forward to reach the shore across the way. He moved his feet more behind him midair, adjusting himself for the landing this time, and he hit the squishy ground at a run, only after a moment able to slow down, and stand still.

He had made it across the first challenge, and now two lines of sticks awaited him, numbering ten in all. They were all thick, broken branches around four or five feet in length where to serve as opponents for him and he approached the 'foes' at a run. The first enemy quickly came up on his right, and straightening out his right hand, he struck about midway down the length of wood, before turning on his heel to strike the next one with the flat of his foot, aiming the kick for its face. He didn't slow down to see the damage he had caused his foe, turning to face the next opponent, and slash at it with his forearm, striking the stick high with his right elbow. His left elbow jolted backwards to strike the opponent sneaking on his rear, and hopefully knock out his teeth. Six men still waited to taste the fury of his fists though, and there would be time later to inspect his wounds, along with theirs which would be significantly greater he hoped.

Planting his left foot solidly on the ground he kicked out hard, the right appendage snapping out to crack into the wood, before setting down his foot and rushing the target on his left. Holding up his left arm to block any attacks coming from his opponent, he arched back his right fist, and curled the fingers together, striking out in a uppercut for a devastating blow to his opponents midsection. He twirled around to meet the other man charging for him, slicing his fist sideways to crack against the man’s jaw, and toss him to the side so he could get on with his last three opponents. Again he met a foe with a barrage of elbows, his solid flesh meeting hard against the man's shoulder, hopefully dislocating it, as he brought his right knee up into the midsection of another opponent, and with his limbs tied up, met the last one with his head, snapping it forwards to crack his forehead against the man's to stun him, and finishing him off with a solid kick to his chest.

Nex panted, breathing heavy amongst the unresponsive wood, and satisfied he had past this challenge, he turned his eyes to his next challenge. A giant of a oak, that spiraled high up amongst the tangle of other trees, and he could see his goal, his back pack bearing all of his supplies hanging from its lofty branches near the top. Sighing he started off for the tree.

[Kendall Saarinen]

Kendall knew his fears were irrational. There was no reason why he should have been scared of every single person in Ravok. Why would they seek out some random Zeltivan for no reason. Sadly, Kendall was not the most rational person at times. Hadrian was the rational one and when the blond was without him he tended to be much more nervous. This day Kendall's nerves had driven him out into the forest on the outskirts of Ravok. He felt much more comfortable out there despite the fear of what creatures might be lurking in it's depths. He kept a watch out for movement, ready to defend himself if needed. Walking slowly, he tried to clear his mind. He was still having trouble keeping his shields steady enough to stand long enough to defend him. He breathed in slowly, trying to shut all things from his thoughts. His mind went back to the day Hadrian taught him shielding. A light smirk came to his lips as the memories played in his mind. It was such an innocent memory. It was from before the two had gotten close but it still was marked with the beginnings of their love. The blond held his hand out in front of him, trying to see if he could shape the shield around it. What to task it as though. There was nothing he was expecting to come at him. A wind blew through the forest, tussling Kendall's hair. It gave him an idea. Why not task the shield to block the wind? He willed his Djed to wrap around his hand, thinking of nothing but blocking out the wind. He smiled lightly to see the shield forming. He was no where close to being extremely skilled in shielding but he was getting better. A sound ahead of him alerted his attention. There was someone else in the forest. He walked forward slowly, looking out for whoever or whatever it could be. Then he saw it, a person training. He seemed to be skilled at whatever he was doing. It made Kendall feel a bit silly at how little he knew of fighting. As the man was finishing his training, or at least taking a break from the looks of it, Kendall stepped forward. He was nervous. It was not the most normal thing to do in the wild, walking up to someone right after they had been training. "Ummm… it's easier training with a partner… if you want one." A light blush dusted at Kendall's cheeks. He shouldn't have spoken up. It was inappropriate. It would be a hard trip up to Avanthal though and he knew he needed to train. "Sorry… I'm…. um… Ken." He looked at the ground shyly. "Sorry, it just seemed like you could use a partner." OOCSorry for how suckish this is. I promise I'll be better as we go on.

[Nex Paciscor]

A noise off to the side distracted his eyes from the giant tree that loomed before him, the faint sound of footsteps reaching his keen ears. Then there was a voice, a male voice, and as his eyes panned to the right he settled upon the young man seeming a bit out of place in the woods. At first his reaction was notably stunned, but he quickly recovered his wits about him as he thought up appropriate response to the man that didn't involve him chasing the poor boy off or trying to eat his face. " Indeed, training with sticks that can't defend themselves makes for very poor practice " he replied, his golden eyes flashing as they looked him up and down, and moved closer to the man, but made no move to greet him with a handshake. " I am Nex, Ken " he added, sniffing the air with big intakes of breath as he studied the curious eyes he possessed.

Nothing so much as smelled off about the man, but his appearance was more than a little bit unsettling, as it wasn't often you stumbled onto someone in the woods, and in some cases for him at least, it wasn't always a pleasant scenario. The man before him seemed harmless enough however, and he wasn't in a mood to dispute over who's territory he was treading on anyways. " Before we spar, how good are you at climbing? " he asked, tossing his head towards the large oak from which his bag hung. He had tossed it earlier as hard as he could and it seemed to have worked a bit too well as it was almost to the top of the tree. Yet another example to himself that he needed practice in thinking through his actions for with his climbing ability it might have been near impossible. If he was in luck though, perhaps Ken would be quite accomplished in it, or at least a little better than he himself was.

oocSame with my posts, very much enjoying threading with you, and your post was great to me.

[Akahi]

Akahi stared at the two hidden behind a tree, one of her golden eyes peeking at the left side of the tree. She was barely noticable, but only another kelvic could notice her. Which meant, obviously he would notice her. She kept her distance especially because he was a wolf and she was an artic fox. Yes, Yes, she could use her defenses if he attacks her in anyway due to territory and what not. But she decided to keep to herself for once and not try and cause any drama. Finally sucking up her guts, she quickly trotted to the two of them. "Am I disturbing?" She asked in a low tone. Akahi quickly ran towards the man sitting right by his feet. She began to lick her fur, cleaning it because she was rather dirty from an encounter with a tiger. How horrid, it really didn't like her. She stopped licking herself for a second realizing that they were looking at her directly. "Oh hi! I'm Akahi." She giggled saying it in a musical tone. She held out a paw sort of so the kelvic could accept it in somewhat way. She dropped it down realizing that she was being rude for a second. She had barged in on their conversation, which was uncalled for. Who would expect a artic fox in Ravok? Well truth was the animal adapts to it's climates easily therefore it's no problem.

[Kendall Saarinen]

Kendall watched the man, Nex as he had introduced himself as. "Nice to meet you Nex." The way the man sniffed at the air reminded him of Cathan. It was not just the action of sniffing though. The man's eyes resembled his canine companion as well. A pang of sorrow hit Kendall as he thought of his friend. He had no idea where he had gone. It seemed as though one day he had been with the group and the next he had just disappeared into the Cobalt Mountains. Maybe the life of humans was not what the Kelvic had wanted. He never seemed to enjoy his more human form. "I am not skilled in climbing at all." He wished that he could have been. That way he could have been of more help. Sadly, there were not a lot of chances to climb in Zeltiva, where Kendall had grown up. "I grew up in a port town so little chance to climb there." He looked up at the bag hanging from the oak when Nex made notice of it. He imagined he could have shot it out of the tree with his fire but that would cause the whole tree to erupt into flames. "I could attempt to help but I don't think I'd be any better than you at climbing."

[Nex Paciscor]

"Bah, I'll just throw rocks at it later" Nex growled out, not really seeming concerned about the sack of his belongings fluttering in the wind. In truth, he really didn't care whether or not he got back the nonsense he had collected over the years, it wasn't like he couldn't get more of it right? It had gotten him by through his years of finding not a want or care in the world, but now that he had to support himself he was finding things to be much more.. different than he had originally thought. For one he seemed to be coming to trust more or less easily, the case in point being that he trusted Aello, even if she used a magic he didn't entirely understand. It worked to mellow him out towards new people 'sneaking' up on him none the less though, which perhaps was in no small part the reason he didn't instantly change and run away from the younger man before him.

Running, not killing... It wasn't much into him to kill a human, because besides the fact that it wasn't respected too kindly by locals, men didn't seem like they would taste too good. The thought of that sweating flesh so chocked with bizarre smells rolling over his tongue churned his stomach and for a moment he felt as though his face had turned a shade of green. Instead of out right puking though he licked his lips, and whipped the back of his hand across his brow, casting a brief glance in the direction he heard shuffling before looking back at Kendal.

"So.. what weapon do you name yours?" Nex said finally after what seemed like a uncomfortably long silence, and stretching out his arms to the sides in a pronounced fashion. He could feel his muscles strain, and stretch as the tension released from them and loosened up his joints for quicker reaction time. Always assume your opponent is better than you. His fists snapped into place before him, his forearms parallel to each other as he kept his left foot slightly forward, keeping up a guard while still getting a great view of whatever Kendal might try.

[Kendall Saarinen]

Kendall looked up into the tree, his brow furrowed. The man seemed so nonchalant about not getting the bag. He supposed if the man was not worried, he should have been either. It wasn't his bag after all. He really needed to stop being so overly concerned with other people's issues. The blond felt a bit nervous looking at the man. He was not sure why. He was just so quiet. It made Kendall feel as though he should have been talking more to make up for the other man's lack of words. He was too nervous to talk though. Ravok had made him so skittish… "I use a broadsword. I'm not too great at it but I'm still sort of new at it." He felt as though it would probably not be best if he spoke of his skill in Reimancy. While he kept company with people who did not mind magic, it did not mean everyone else was fine with it. "What about you? I saw you were working with some unarmed combat but do you use a weapon as well?" The man had asked him about his weapon so it was only fair that the blond was allowed to ask the same question. He eyed the man carefully, just as the man eyed him. Kendall's gaze was lined with auristics though. He watched the colors that lined the man's body, keeping an eye to make sure he was not getting hostile. OOCAkahi joined the thread after the season changed so we cannot count her as part of the thread. That is why I skipped over her.

[Nex Paciscor]

The man spoke with more measure than most, the words coming from his lips stretching out into the silence. Wielding a thing of metal was not a wholly unheard of concept for Nex, as after all Aello used a weapon and she did so well. Still it was strange, but at the same time made sense for he found his human body to be weak and lacking in defenses so it was only natural for men to don on defensives that they fashioned from nature to more even the odds. He was used to having sharp teeth, used to having all four paws on the ground in order to better run down his prey, but over the years he had learned to make this form not entirely helpless, working his arms, and awkwardly long legs to better come to action and heed his commands. Not to mention the other power his trainer had unlocked within him long ago helped with this bodes lack of defense, though it was a bit harder to use, much like an untrained muscle he was only just now learning how to use. Human's ability to find the power within themselves he supposed was their natural defense, and after seeing first hand just how deadly that power could be, he knew why it was they that lived in vast cites and treated animals badly without and fear of reprisal.

"My body is my weapon" Nex said as he splayed his fingers stretching out his muscles one by one before doing the same with his other hand. There where certain gestures that his master had taught him to better tap at the power that flowed inside of him, gestures he had been drilled hard on so as to never forget. His heart slowly thudded faster in his chest, the curious individual smelling much better in comparison to the other folks of Ravok he had the displeasure to meet. "You been here long? Who may you know in the city? He asked in rough succession with the knowledge that humans tended to travel in packs so much like his own kind did. It was one of the few things they did that he approved of, as it was only logical to stay near company where everyone can protect each other.