[Knirin Gardens] Fighting Dirty (Rhy)

by **Naeya** on August 24th, 2012, 3:38 am

Timestamp: Season of Summer, 12th Day, 512 AV

"Eee-yah!"

Naeya's small, scaled fist sailed forward and cut awkwardly through the empty air. She stood barefoot on the soft grass of the Knirin Gardens with her left leg placed a few inches further out than her right, knees barely bent. Her left hand was balled up and held too close to her green shirt, while her right remained swung straight out in front. To observers, the Konti looked to be a parody of a fighter. In her own mind, she was a warrior capable of taking on Riverfall's entire Akalak population.

The young woman had seen many of the city's men practicing unarmed combat in the park and, as the late afternoon sun beat down on her, she did her best to imitate their movements. She too had come to the Gardens to work on her ability to defend herself without a weapon. Kobalt had been the one to suggest it as a caution for if she were to ever lose her dagger in a fight. She willingly followed his advice, though later reflection would cause her to realize that he had meant for her to learn with an instructor rather than through a series of trials and errors.

White pants flowed loosely from her hips to the top of her heels, and wavered gently as the Konti repositioned her limbs. This time, her fists were held both too low from her face and too far away from her body. She did, however, allow her knees to bend lower. A look of serious concentration had its home on her face. As she jabbed her left fist forward and subsequently threw her right fist after it, a gust of air left her lungs and she once more cried out.

"Yah!"

Naeya's blonde braid flipped over her shoulder as she moved from her punching position into a side kick. Her right foot kicked sharply out from her knee, but she had to hold herself back from nearly hitting a bystander. A light blush spread across her cheeks as she stumbled backwards to catch her balance. "Sorry! So sorry," she called out, biting her lower lip apologetically.

Smooth, Nae. Smooth...

by **Rhy** on August 24th, 2012, 5:52 am

Rhy is, for once, looking especially human today. Not only is she wearing almost every piece of clothing she owns, she has also scraped back her wild hair into a braid thats wound around the back of her head, and her long tongue is tucked well into her mouth. Even her bare feet are suspiciously clean and her whole body reeks of roses. Is there a special occasion that warrants such overt physical changes in the former street rat? Yes: today she plans on entering the Tuvya for proper combat instruction. She assumes being taken for a Kuvan will help her cause.

She had just finished bathing and dressing herself in a secluded spot further downstream. And had made sure to rid the shore of the many rose heads she had stolen from the garden to scrub herself with. Now refreshed and feeling confident, she starts the long trek to the other side of the city for some training. Until she is knocked off her feet by a very spirited Konti.

The high kick comes out a nowhere, and aims directly for the soft spot between her ribs and her pelvis. Luckily the kick is retracted before it can come in contact with her kidneys, but not before eliciting an awkward, forward-dodging movement from the young Kelvic that lands her firmly on her ass.

She stays sitting on the wet ground, stunned, with her long legs splayed awkwardly before her and looks up at her would-be attacker. She's a tiny little wisp of a woman, as most Konti are, and quite pretty. With hair so blond its nearly white, wide green eyes and pastel coloured scales across the back of her hands and bare feet. She looks incredibly young, surprisingly graceful, and definably not like a fighter. Rhy interrupts her mumbled apology with a short bark of a laugh.

"Its ok! Practising is tough. Im on my way right now for a lesson." She smiles as she picks herself up and dusts off the seat of her pants, tucking a rebellious strand of hair behind her ear. Suddenly a thought comes over her and she looks the smaller woman over again, quite brazenly. There is no guarantee that the Tuvan will take her in. And its such a long walk...

"Actually, can I practise with you?" She smiles brightly and folds her hands in front of her chest. "Please? A bit of a spare might be fun."

Even if the both of them are quite thin and (if the woman's kick means anything) have very little skill, she figures she can't possibly lose against a Konti, or be seriously hurt. Of course, the realization that she was floored by a Konti's non-contact practise kick conveniently slips her mind.

by **Naeya** on August 30th, 2012, 2:27 am

"Oh dear."

Naeya winced as the brunette landed solidly on the ground before her. That response to the Konti's kick would have been welcome if she'd actually intended to floor the girl, but seeing as her only opponent seconds earlier had been the air... Well, she wouldn't exactly call it a "successful" kick.

Gods, I need to practice.

She shot a hand out to help the girl up, but it came only seconds too late. The brunette had already stood and dusted herself off, and was smiling at Naeya good-naturedly. She was long-limbed and taller than the Konti, though far less imposing than the Akalak brethren that frequented the same park. The girl's brown hair was bound and wound in a neat braid, and she faintly reminded Naeya of fragrant roses.

Roses, and now grass. I'm sure she really appreciates that.

When the girl smiled and asked to join the amateur training session, however, Naeya found herself preoccupied by a new feature. Canines. Sharp, extended canines. They seemed almost animalistic in nature, though the Konti was not quick enough to immediately connect the teeth to the girl's Kelvic nature.

"Oh! I..." Naeya trailed off, distracted. My, what big teeth you have.

After a moment, Naeya returned to the present. She cleared her throat and returned the brunette's smile with one of her own. How could she possibly say no to sparring with the girl who had forgiven her so easily? "Of course," she responded graciously, attempting to make up for her rude stare. To the Konti's knowledge, the girl was simply a human with really (really) elongated front teeth. "I would love to have a partner, though I can't promise it will be a very good spar."

She laughed lightly and reached out to shake the girl's hand, using a firmer grip than usual. Even though she'd hinted at her inadequacies as a sparring partner, she wanted to at least seem like some sort of force to be reckoned with. Or at least not seem like someone who would topple over with the flick of a finger. "My name's Naeya. Again, I'm so sorry about that whole... thing." The Konti waved her other hand from the ground to the girl.

Releasing the handshake, Naeya backed up a few feet and balled her fists up once more. She wasn't quite sure how to run an unarmed combat spar. Did they just... fight? She wrinkled her nose as she imagined herself getting knocked in the face. No. No, that wouldn't do.

"Should we make rules or something?" she asked hesitantly, hoping the girl knew more about friendly spars than she did. "Perhaps no hits to the, uh, facial region?" For her nose's sake, she hoped the girl would agree.

by **Rhy** on August 31st, 2012, 11:53 pm

The handshake was returned with only a seconds delay. A greeting that respectful must mean she was really mistaken for a Kuvan. All that preparation and dressing shyke must have worked! Her satisfaction bubbled, clean and light, behind her eyes like the sparkling of champaign. Until she noticed the Konti staring distractedly at her mouth, and the light goes out as she switches to a tight-lipped smile.

Right, don't get too carried away, she reprimands herself. Clothes and hair doesn't make you human.

The woman's grip is surprisingly strong in her tapered hand. Maybe this woman is a fighter after all. "My names Rhy, nice to meet you. And I was rather impressed with that kick, actually. I didn't know the Konti could fight. All I've ever seen are the healers, psychics and the contract-" she suddenly turns a rather alarming shade of red as she realizes her mistake. "I mean, the ones contracted by the city for... healing things. And I bet there are warriors on your home, island, thing."

Smooth.

She clears her throat around her horrible Konti stereotype and steps back a space of her own. "Why don't we do it like in the Arena? You make a point, and we back up and do it again until someone else gets a point. Whoever ends with the most points wins." She nods to herself, "that might work. Oh, and yes, no face." Or kidneys, she almost adds.

She takes a defensive stance of her own to mirror the woman's. She finds the whole 'proper punch' thing kind of silly. Unconventional is much more effective. But she's here to learn the conventional way, so she might as well do it right. Even if the pose is nothing short of awkward.

"If you agree, go ahead and have the first strike."

OOCFeel free to wail on her if you want to teach her a lesson.

by **Naeya** on October 18th, 2012, 2:40 am

Naeya hid a grin beneath her palm as Rhy blundered through her introduction. While the stereotyping wasn't particularly appreciated, Naeya had to admit that she respected the girl's candidness. It was clear Rhy didn't know much of anything about Konti culture, but, to be fair, Naeya didn't know much herself. All she understood was what her mother had told her through chavi and words, and that information had its limits. She was far more comfortable discussing Akalak society. Besides, she rarely felt like she had missed out. Riverfall was her home, and she couldn't imagine a childhood without the Bluevein.

A curt nod of her head indicated her agreement with Rhy's terms. They sounded fair enough. Maybe this spar would make a fighter out of her yet.

As Rhy stepped back into a similar combat stance, Naeya clenched her fists in anticipation. She allowed the girl's earlier words to run through her head. "I didn't know the Konti could fight." Even though the girl meant well, someone ought to show Rhy that Konti could fight, right? While Naeya didn't exactly think she was the best person for the job (in fact, she may actually have been one of the worst), no one else was around to stand up for the Konti name. It was left completely up to her to defend her race from what was such a (she assumed) blatant fallacy.

An impish smile played on her face, and she began to circle her opponent. She took three steps to the right, keeping her body facing Rhy at all times. Her right fist was held a foot out from her face, and her left was held close to her chest.

Three more steps. Her eyes were on Rhy, although they didn't quite know where to land. They darted from her face to her hands to her feet, and then back to her face. If her eyes didn't keep moving, how else would she know when her opponent was about to strike?

Inexperience was a hard teacher.

One more step. Naeya took a deep breath and glanced at the girl, looking for an opening - any opening. Thinking she may have spotted one, though it may have simply been a desperate hope, she exhaled and quickly jabbed her left fist towards Rhy in an attempted feint. Her legs lunged forward and her right fist swung towards the girl's lower abdomen with the intent of buckling her over.

by **Traverse** on January 21st, 2013, 12:00 am

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