The Start of a Beautiful Partnership (Ximal)

[Ana Sol Starris]

Fall 25th, 512AV Afternoon, Training Grounds The cut of air followed by the metal cored wood in the shape of a shortsword, flimsily, small hands swung the practice item around. Feet spread apart, maybe a little too far apart but it made do with the over head swings. The buckler held firmly on the arm and protecting the practicers front, the stab through of an imaginary target in front of the sword wielder. The small woman was hyping her self up as she put her weight on one foot, trying out a new attack and striking the other foot out; eyes shutting at that moment and throwing her off her center of gravity, making her flail pitifully. Setting the foot firmly back down, and regaining her balance by rocking back and forth, the small woman did not fall on her back or side. With a relieved sigh, Ana assumed the offencive position again. Lifting the buckler up, and doing an under hand slice, her feet all over the place now as she stepped forwards with a final swing of frustration. Sitting down and rubbing her eyes, the sword and buckler on the ground now. It had been such a long time since she had done this, and especially without a teacher, why had Zandelia left? Ana wondered, depressed over the dissapearence of their last leader. First Cade, now Zandelia, how would the Crimson Edge ever live on? Look at yourself, sitting stupidly there and pitying yourself, a stray voice said inside her head, mocking her weakness. Shaking herself, she stood up again, picking the sword up and hefting the buckler so it would be level with herself. Why did she continue to try anyways? It was futile really, she didn't need to know how to fight anymore, and yet she was compelled to keep learning how to defend herself. Why couldn't she just give it a break? Eyes watering, she sniffed a bit, how would anything be done if she kept this up? So many questions flooded her mind to the point she let out a frustrated yell at an imaginary object in front of her, hacking and slashing without any form, besides to just exhert out her anger over how everything became to be. "Why...Is...This...Happening..." She breathed out with each fury induced swing, whispering under her breath until she finally just stopped and stared at the ground. She hadn't even noticed if anyone was watching, nor did she care at that point.

[Ximal]

Xi tracked into the training grounds as he was want to do on everyday he had free from work. Xi stretched calmly. He'd only brought his weapons and armour with him today and for it he was a lot lighter than usual. The training grounds on the other hand were not as empty as they usually were. No there was someone there who Xi knew. An acquaintance from sunberth. Ana. What was she doing practising with a weapon. She wasn't the best suited to fighting , he'd always though of her as more of a running type. For the moment Xi just watched. She seemed frustrated. Even angry. Something was making her upset, even as he saw the small tears running down her face. Xi felt a little bad for her. Everything she knew had gone, completely. Even her new husband, wasn't particularly much of one. Still she had no form if she kept that up she'd get killed easily. Xi stepped out from the bushes and kept his hood up. walking a little past her before speaking slowly and calmly. "Ana, your not going to hit anything like that. You could do with a training partner. And anger is only going to get you killed." Xi pulled his bow off of his shoulder before nocking an arrow, drawing his monolith of a bow and loosing it at the target. A hit...Barely but a hit none the less. Deep slow breaths were what helped keep him clam these days. Repeating the cycle, nock, draw loose. Xi hit the mark a little better in this shot. "If you want i can help you release a little of that stress. And yes i do mean by you trying to hit me. Just so you know your shield there. Covers more of your body the further it is from you. Because it's so small it's light, which means it's manoeuvrable which means it can block a lot of blows." The cycle repeated again, he was steadily drawing closer to the centre of the target and even then his shots were few, and far between.

[Ana Sol Starris]

Ana didn't react, she didn't flinch, but her ears picked up on the drawing of the bowstring and her eyes flicked to the target she heard being struck. Straightening her shoulders and watching as he continued to shoot it, slowly, calmly, Ana glanced at him and then away. "..I'm not angry.." Ana lied, straight to his face "Just frustrated, its been a long time since I've done this.. and the first training session I had formally was last winter," she breathed, lifting her hand up to wipe at her eyes again standing there dejectedly somewhat with the buckler hanging limply in her hand. Heavy for her, and her lack of strength, but she was able to hold it up "still.. It would be nice to have a training partner.. since.." Ana didn't finish that sentence, her shoulders slumped as she thought of Zandelia. The thwocks of the arrows hitting the targets kept drawing her attention, as she watched him, wondering what bow he was using. Those were some awfully big arrows for a bow, definitely not crossbow bolts, that was for sure. Out of curiousity she looked at him fully, and only turned her frame slightly towards him to be astounded by the size of the bow, and taken aback by the golden locks flowing from Ximals head. Eyes widening and facing him fully. "How in the blazes did you get blonde hair?" Recognizing the light yellow to be just like her own.

[Ximal]

XI sighed as he listened to her. not a lot of training....And it showed. Xi stopped firing the arrows. long enough to converse with ehr now. placeing the bow down by his side as she spoke. Xi tilted his head lightly as she mentioned losing her training partner . The only person he could think of that knew her and knew how to fight was zandelia...Xi sighed lightly again and hung his head completely forgetting about his situation until. She mentioned it. XI started to laugh lightly as he spoke out his words cheerfully. but not condescendingly. "Long story, boring one too it wouldn't interest you." Xi held the bow at his side thinking baout what to say to her and how to cheer her up, if only slightly. "Now it kinds looks like yours doesn't it? Still i meant what i said. If you wanted i'd help you train. and not just in your sword. i could help you with fighting without weapons. I know several things that can help against larger and stronger opponents. Yes there are people out there bigger than me." Xi placed the bow across his back as he normally carried it. Before heading to retrieve and slide the arrows back into their quiver. "Ana you and i both know your not the strongest of people, so you should really practice on shallow fast cuts. A lot of light attacks dealt really fast can have the same impact as one large blow. Your not strong so use the buckler to take only glancing blows. use your speed to your advantage." Xi hushed his mouth slowly and allowed her to take in what he'd said as well as try to formulate her own meanings of his words. Would she get it ?

[Ana Sol Starris]

"Pah," Ana said to his reply on the hair "I enjoy storys, before the Spires I use to carry a book around that had a story in it." The small, ex-thief followed after Ximal as he put the bow around him, watching him carefully. How he walked, listening to how he talked, she took into account how tall he was, how strong he looked, and by what she was hearing now- he sounded to be a good teacher just from the advice he was spewing now... And it didn't hurt to let a little frustration out, it would give her a very good reason to launch attacks at him. Learn his ways for a later day? From past experience she knew he was stupidly fast and she had barely gotten away that one time in Sunberth, when she filched his ring from him. Taking in his weapons on his person, the armor covering his body, he was a walking, talking armory. Ana was fairly certain now that she wouldn't have to worry about hurting him, especially with her wooden, metal cored practice weapon and her incompetence on how to fight. Cocking her head to the side, Ana gave him a semi-confused look as she worked the gears in her brain "so you're saying I should give up on the buckler and focus only on the blade?" She questioned, not sure she was understanding completely but it didn't hurt to ask questions.

[Ximal]

Xi smiled lightly , she enjoyed a story? Well then once in a while she'd have to stop talking and listen, Or at least just stop being an old grump. However she hadn't entirely gotten the meaning of his words. She was on the right track but not exactly what he was aiming for. He rolled his shoulder before drawing the small hand axe at his side. No intent o hurt her but to show her. Especially since he was wielding it with the blade towards him. Before he spoke he took the axe around hard and close to her stopping just a few inches from her. Clearing his throat lightly he spoke. Your on the right track but i didn't mean give up on it. Your fast so why stand there and take blows unnecessarily? Like just then when i took that swing, if you'd have seen it your natural instinct would say ' dodge!' Or rather scream it. When your facing a larger opponent keep dodging, the larger swings they make to try and finish you off often leaven them with large openings and large response times. As well as an assache of a job to recover from the swing." Xi pulled his axe back from her. Letting her know that he had nothing against her. "Your weapons may be small and you may not have much strength but that also means your attacks fly much faster. The shield is light, and cant take a lot of blows. Also if you've ever had to intercept a blow that shyke stings. Taking a blow on a shield wont magically stop it. You'll still feel a shock of pain shoot through you. It's the same principle with armour. A lot of small fast blows often deal more damage to a armoured target than a few large ones. Also if your a fan of stories maybe i'll tell you one day. you look like you could use a bit of cheering up. Though i did mean what i said. you do look much healthier out her. The jungle seems to be helping out your health. You all so seem to be filling out your clothes a but better too. And NO i'm not saying your fat but rather...developing better."

[Ana Sol Starris]

Ana watched his every movement, from the roll to his shoulder and then to his hand going to the axe at his side. When he drew it, she only tensed up to block with the shield, yet with the weight of the buckler her response was slower than it should have been and with an axe close to her face. Her eyes fixated on the head and slowly realizing he was holding it the wrong way, instead of the heads blade facing downwards it was turned upwards. The whole time he had been talking, and had kept the axe close to her, she held her breath and kept looking towards him and the blade, unsure if he was going to do anything with it...That was a real weapon, she was only armed with a practice one. Yet he didn't sound like he was going to attack her outright, instead there was a teacherly, instructorly tone. Relaxing as he pulled the axe away, she let her breath go and breathed back in normally this time. Listening as he talked, it was so much to take in, she was having trouble keeping up with everything he was saying. His explanations were making sense though as she turned each sentence he spoke around in her head, nodding as he spoke until he mentioned the stories again. Looking at him curiously, she did want to know the story, and she had a good ear when it came to listening to them. More memories floated up at her subconscience, the story of a child in the mountains who had killed his siblings to survive. It was enough to make her have an aura of sorrow, maybe her face displayed it? Shaking her head as he mentioned her looking better, "I'd rather be fat than half starved and gangly," she replied, sighing "the jungle may be helping with my physical imperfections but it certainly hasn't set my mind at peace like I was told it would.." Shrugging at that, she took the buckler off and set it down. Stretching the arm out as it had slightly gone numb from just letting it hang there in her hand, and then looking at Ximal, holding her wooden blade to him "enough with the chitter chatter, I know how it stings to take a connecting blow, with blade to blade, if I hadn't known better to keep holding onto my real shortsword, I'd probably be dead now. As to many times I should be dead, but I'm not, luck? Do you suppose?" Ana gave him an inquisitve look on his opinion about luck, before continueing on "I don't want to survive off sheer luck, I never have wanted to, so help me learn to survive on skill. I've never fancied the buckler, it doesn't work with my stealth, though its not like I'll ever have to be stealthy again." Giving him a challenging look, Ana was completely dead serious on learning, she didn't want luck to aid her, she wanted skill, nothing more, nothing less.

[Ximal]

She'd rather be fat than half starved ? He supposed that was true. Better to be a larger person than one byfar too thin. and that it wasn't granting her the peace of mind that she was after. Xi slipped the axe back into his belt. He knew a thing or two about not getting mental peace. Though now he spotted something on her hand now that she'd dropped her Buckler. "It's doing a wonderful job about physical imperfections for the pair of us. but mentally as you said it isn't great...Liro is still a problem...AND if i may ask, why exactly are your hands green?" Then she pointed her blade at him. Was she serious? She'd just pointed her weapon at him and then told him she knew what it was like to take blade to blade. He raised an eyebrow. He smiled lightly she was serious. And the thing about luck ...he thought he'd better comment on that. "Skill isn't everything, sometimes it's better to be lucky than skillful...Gods only know how many times ovek's saved my ass. Also. I think you should learn how to fight even without your weapon. Since it may not always be on your side. However if you wish to challenge me to a fight, i'll use my actual weapons. Blunt side of course. But that doesn't mean they wont hurt if they hit." Xi reached over his shoulder and pulled the single edged battle axe off of his back. Holding it blunt side towards her. He flexed his fingers before speaking. "Right i'll let you have the first strike. Lets see how you deal against an opponent whose wielding a large two handed weapon."

[Ana Sol Starris]

"Hah!" Ana smiled, brightly as he asked her about her hands "I'll tell you if you tell me how you made your hair blonde?" Nodding to his opinion on luck and skill, respecting it, personally Ana had survived on luck alone for far too long. She wanted to have skill to back herself up, not a higher power thinking they could keep her alive through simple occurences. No, Ana wanted to proove it to herself, to Ximal, to Wrenmae, to everyone, that she could survive without luck riding her like a dog. Even to the gods, that she did not need them or their religions to get by, she saw no gain in recieving their favor; it wasn't as if they were ever there for her when her brother died, when she lived in Sunberth, not once did she believe they had anything to do with her survival. It was mere luck, nothing more. "Like fist fighting, or something?" Ana inquired to the suggestion of knowing how to defend ones self when without a weapon. Ana held the sword at the ready, her feet sliding apart to balance herself and then holding her hand in front of her, open, but not necessarily there for any purpose besides maintaining balance "just promise you won't screw up and kill me with that thing of yours," Ana stated, slightly peturbed over the size of the weapon "seriously, I will haunt you forever as a ghost if you do... And you won't like it in the least bit." She let out a nervous laugh at what she said, Dira help her, the poor child. Stepping forwards and to the side, trying to be ever conscience where she was stepping and making sure she didn't trip in the process- just like using stealth when sneaking about, Ana swung the practice weapon at him a little too firmly in her hand.

[Ximal]

Xi smiled. Alright he had to concede she was craftier than he gave her credit for. "Alright. I'll tell you but training first." Xi shifted his footing. takign care to position himself as if her was fighting unarmed. Following her words and her movement he just nodded at her mention of fist fighting and right now he'd focus on the weapons. And laughed a little when she mentioned coming back and haunting him. He wouldn't hurt her at all. Still he tried to keep his imposing image. In truth he was a little inexperienced with weapons it was better that he also get a chance with them. Xi watched her movements his eye's were trained from having watched people actually trying to kill him. Xi followed her motions to the other side. Watching her shoulders and not hwer weapon if she watched him closely she might have picked this up. He brought the heel of the axe to connect with her wooden blade just hard enough to send a shock through ehr arm. "Good blend your other skill with your fighting, make your style ALL your own. Don't share it with anyone, learn the basics and then adapt it to suit you." Right now all Xi was trying to do was get a good feel of ehr strengths and weaknesses.