Jib's Jabs [Self training- Keorvic]

[Keorvic]

6th Day of Summer 510 AV

Keorvic woke up with a start, jolting himself into consciousness as he moved in his sleep. As muscles he was unused to using reported their various aches and pains, he rolled out of bed, wincing and rolling his shoulders. He looked around for Akiva or Kipps, but failed to spot either of them. With mounting worry he attempted to leap out of bed to find his pack and make sure everything was still there, that he had not been the victim of a "Honey Trap" as his dad had warned him of. However, his legs tangled in the sheets and all he managed to do was throw his shoulder into the floor of his and Akiva's room. As the white lights and stars of pain receded, he remembered her saying something to him about leaving to learn how to use that new bow she had picked up. He hadn't remembered until now because she had then turned her attentions to getting the most pleasure out of him she possibly could. Groaning, he picked himself up, and began the daily search for his clothing. "Strange that I am so used to her ways so quickly." he wondered to himself, finding his shirt under a nearby dresser, and his pants all the way across the other room resting against the door. "Amazing," he thought, shaking his head with wonder at the passions of the wild Kelvic girl. Having finally located all his clothes, he stowed his pack in the chest at the foot of the bed, pausing to retrieve his small bag of mizas. it was considerably lighter than it had been before he reached the city, but this didn't bother Keorvic. He grinned at the memory of the frenzy his little carvings had caused in one of the towns he had traveled through. "No, money should not be a concern. Who would have guessed that such a simple hobby would be able to provide me with products better than any amount of fishing." With one final glance, he looked about his shared apartment, and left. turning, he produced a key and locked the door, then set off to find his way to one of the more busy streets. As he left, he nodded to the innkeeper, and received such a knowing smirk that he blushed and resolved not to greet the woman again if he could avoid it. As he made it out into the street, he looked around. It was still early enough in the morning that the streets were mostly empty, and the few people who were out and about moved with purpose, eager to finish their tasks on the clear morning.

[Keorvic]

Keorvic wandered through the city, taking in the sights and sounds of the morning, and looking for something that might catch his eye. As he rounded the corner, a small bakery did just that, and he entered, looking to break fast. A few minutes later, he exited the bakery carrying a hot fresh loaf of bread. He continued his wanderings of the city, slowly getting his bearings, and consuming the delicious bread. As he came to a square, he noticed a sign in the door of an establishment bearing the name "The Spinning Coin." He wandered up to the sign, and looked to see if it was anything interesting. After a few false starts, he remembered what the marks on the small page meant, and read quietly to himself "'Boxing Training inside.' Well that's descriptive and to the point" Deciding to give it a try, he pulled open the door and stepped inside. Most of the interior of the building was dimly lit, but Keorvic could see gambling tables and chairs. all along one wall was a cage where bookies could take bets. There was nobody about, however, except for two men near the brightly lit cage in the center of the place. One man was clearly the Owner of this establishment, and leaned on the cage nonchalantly, talking easily with the other man. The other man, though, was a huge Akalak. Incredibly dark green skinned, He wore short pants that cut off just below the knees, and a loose cotton shirt. He stood well over seven feet tall, incredibly muscled, the man moved with confidence and surety the Keorvic had never witnessed, even in his Kelvic companion. Silver hair was pulled back in a tight pony-tail. The huge man was chatting easily while hoisting large sacks and bags onto poles and hanging them with ease. As Keorvic approached, the two men both glanced at him. The two turned back to each other and seemed to wrap up whatever they were talking about. Then the proprietor nodded and pushed himself up, ambling away to do some task or another. The Akalak turned and fixed his gaze on Keorvic, and addressed him with a deep baritone, "Are you seeking training in the pugilistic arts?" "If by that you mean boxing, then yes, I would love to learn whatever you can teach me." the Vantha said, still a little shaken by the huge warrior. he had heard little apart from the fact that they could be extremely dangerous. Shrugging slightly to himself, he decided to just be as friendly as possible. "My name is Keorvic." "Greetings Keorvic. I am known as Jib. for a decent price I can teach you the basics of Boxing; How to hold yourself, how to guard, how to take a hit, how to not throw a punch, but rather spot openings and jab quickly. Come up here, let's begin.

[Keorvic]

Keorvic climbed up into the cage/ring, not really knowing what to expect. after a quick covering of the rules, Jib tossed him a pair of padded gloves and pulled on a similar (though far more padded) pair himself. Bouncing around on the balls of his feet, Jib called out corrections to Keorvic, who had immediately taken the stance of a bare-knuckled brawler. "This is not brawling. If you leave yourself that open, you will pay for it dearly." A sudden green blur arced towards Keorvic's face, slowing suddenly until it connected only enough to pop his head back. "Good, you already know how to roll with a punch. Bring your arms up and hunch yourself forward. If I see an opening like that again there will be no more pulled punches." the Akalak stated plainly. Soon the two were circling eachother, Keorvic managing to very nearly hit the master boxer once or twice, and was only decked once. when he finally landed a punch, it was only on the other man's forearm. "Good! now, I will teach you the many types of punches and when to use each type. we will establish a rhythm and work on consistencies. I can tell by how you take blows that you are no stranger to being hit, and that is good." Soon Jib had him lined up and was showing him how to do various punches, from jabs to uppercuts, hooks and roundhouse punches. "You have a background in brawling yes? I thought so. You will probably take to the Slugging style like a fish to water then." Jib explained that Sluggers usually lacked finesse and footwork, but made up for it in pure power. The downside of slower, more powerful punches was that He would have to be able to take more punches as well, and simply trust that he would land on the upperhand of the tradeoff. Armed with that knowledge, Keorvic was taught how to put his whole body behind his thrown punches, and was instructed on when such punches would be a good idea. As they talked, a few regulars of the Spinning Coin had let themselves in. One of them, obviously a student of Jib, offered to go a round or two with Keorvic, and the huge Akalak agreed that a sparring match with someone more close to his level would be good for him. This being the Spinning Coin, small bets were exchanged as the newcomer limbered up and Keorvic helped clear the cage. Finally, they squared off against each other, bare chested and gloved, ready to begin. Jib outlined the rules, running over them with a swiftness that belied a history of repetition, like this was a common mantra before each match. With a ring of the bell, the match began. Coming in slowly, the newcomer threw a few quick jabs to test Keorvic's defense. Keorvic, meanwhile, slowly maneuvered his way towards the man till he was within range. Then suddenly he unleashed a devastating one-two punch combination that managed to batter through the man's defenses and land solidly on him. He staggered back, but Keorvic hung back, expecting a ruse. As expected the man regained his feet to easily, and glared at Keorvic. He knew the Vantha's range now, and would not make the same mistake. And so the match continued, neither really gaining the upper hand. back and forth they went, the new man throwing quick combos of punches that battered at Keorvic, and Keorvic throwing heavy punches that mostly landed. eventually the man staggered back and fell down. The Akalak began counting, but the man got up and signaled his surrender. "I'm done. That was good, my friend. You have obviously seen more fights than I, and have more talent for this than I do." the man exchanged grasps with Keorvic, and good-naturedly handed collected the lost bets and handed the winnings to Keorvic. "That should be just enough to cover your lesson today, friend." Jib spoke up, taking the money from Keorvic, who nodded his assent and thanked him for his time. He shrugged back into his shirt and handed the padded gloves back to Jib. "One more thing, I must show you how to wrap your hands so that you do not injure yourself when you do not have gloves." The darkskinned man said, and pulled out a length of cord. He wrapped it around Keorvic's left hand, and watched Keorvic wrap it around his other hand. Satisfied, he let Keorvic keep the cord, and bade him goodbye. Keorvic left the gambling hall and headed back to the inn, anxious to clean himself up and eat, for he had worked up quite a hunger, and was ready to eat. Setting out into the city again, armed with new knowledge, he walked with confidence.

[Tabarnac]

XP Award! Keorvic XP Award: Boxing +3 Item: 2 cord hand-wraps Additional Note Feel free to PM me if you have any questions or concerns. Keep writing!