Completed Bearing My Burden I

[Ricky Maze]

Ricky watched closely as Castor made his first strike, the arc rather flabby and poor as he completed it. It was a simple strike made by a beginner, so of course Ricky would chuckle a bit and wait until Castor made a second attempt. This time he showed some control over the blade as there was decent force behind it, enough momentum with the blade to cause a small amount of damage were there a target there. Ricky nodded with in approval as Castor checked with him about it, a small grin on his face as he walked near the scholar.

"Solid for a starter, ya showed more control the second time which is good. After a bit more practice ya should be well on yer way as a beginner." He enthused Castor as he reached for his blade once more, once Castor handed Ricky the longsword he sheathed it back at his side and began to undo the buttons of his jacket. "If ye decide ya want more practice with a blade come to me, I'll be happy to teach ya what I can." He assured Castor as he turned to the tree behind him, when he finally undid his jacket he took it off and hung it on a broken branch, sweat broken out on the skin of his back and chest. He turned back to Castor and for the first time his friend would be able to notice the scar over his lower right rib, the souvenir given to him from the pirates he night his brother was killed.

"Kayo, now we get to punch each other for a little bit." He joked with a hearty laugh, a relaxing sigh came as the light cool ocean breeze only just slighty picked up to cool his skin. "It gets hot in the uniform. Anyway here's the idea, I want ya to punch me here." He turned to where his left shoulder and upper arm was towards Castor, the scar on that present as well as Ricky flexed his arm. "Punch me arm as hard as ya can aight, I wanna know how hard ya can sock a man." He instructed as he waited for Castor to throw his fist, arm locked into it's flex so it would absorb the punch.

"Ricky's words.", "Ricky's thoughts.", "Telion's words.", "Hannah's words.", "Other's words."

[Castor Riley]

Castor felt a small gush of pride at Ricky's enthusiastic praise of his artless flailings. "Will do, Ricky," he replied, actually considering doing so. As Ricky took off his uniform's jacket, Castor realised that that would be the most prudent course of action, and followed suit; they were there to train, and sweating buckets through his shirt would be making that much harder than it needed to. He unbuttoned his shirt completely, as he walked towards the same tree and put it on a nearby branch. The ocean breeze felt great on his naked skin, the sweat on his body making it that much cooler. As Ricky turned towards him, Castor noticed a scar over his ribs. Before he had a chance to ask about it, though, Ricky began their training session. Castor raised his eyebrows in surprise when Ricky said they would be punching each other, but Ricky's laughter relaxed him a bit. His next comment put him on edge again, however. "Punch you?" he asked incredulously. Ricky's explanation did little to assuage him. Still, he'd agreed to this training session, so he'd have to conform to Ricky's teaching methods. With a sigh, he lifted his fists up, readying himself for a punch. As he did, he noticed another scar on Ricky's shoulder. "Where did you get all those scars from anyway?" He asked, trying to get his mind off the task at hand. He punctuated his question with a punch to his friend's shoulder. It didn't really connect as well as he'd planned, as he missed and it sort of slided off the side of Ricky's bicep. "Oops," he said, with a mischievous grin. "Let me try again." Castor was finding himself enjoying this more than he thought he would.

[Ricky Maze]

"Don't worry mate, we won't be doin' any harm to one another. O' that I garentee ya." He confirmed with a nod as Castor seemed a little less motivated to punch his arm, it seemed that his scars though proved to be a question bringer for Castor. "This one on me shoulder was from a bear when Odis and I travelled outside Zeltiva." He responded as he felt Castor's fist barely do anything, he chuckled a bit with a challenging look. "Ye know ya can hit better then that,be more direct with yer aim and that should help." He encouraged with a grin, the challenged look still in his expression as he braced for the impact of, hopefully, a more direct punch. "We were travelin' to Syliras with a partner, until a bear awoke from hibernation early and attacked. That was a pretty scary event for me, but not as scary as the night I got me other scar."

Ricky knew Castor meant his other scar, he only had two of them to speak of really. Though he never really boasted about how he came to obtain the scars he was rather proud to wear them, they served as prime examples at how much of a struggle he's put up to keep his life. "The one on me rib was from a cut I got from a pirate, the night Odis died saving my life. I also broke me right hand punching the bastard that killed him, kinda went into a blind rage when it happened." He admitted with an unchanged expression, focus and determination was all that seem to exist now. "Now c'mon and hit me arm with all ye got mate, after that I'll have an idea at how much power ya pack in them arms." He reassured Castor with a testive grin, he knew Castor might've possibly be enjoyed this. Ricky knew he enjoyed testing Castor that's for sure, that and teaching him how to better defend himself in the long run.

"Ricky's words.", "Ricky's thoughts.", "Telion's words.", "Hannah's words.", "Other's words."

[Castor Riley]

Castor listened absently as he considered what the best way to punch Ricky would be, as to show him his strength -- what he had of it, anyway. Rickly quickly got his full attention, though, when he mentioned being mauled by a bear. At least that's what Castor retained from the story. "A bear?! And who's Odis?" He asked his questions in quick succession, relaxing his arms completely at his side. When Ricky explained the origin of his second scar, Castor fell silent. "I'm sorry you had to go through that, Ricky" he said sombrely, putting his attention once more into the fist-fighting training, as Ricky asked. Castor extended his arm first, touching the spot he intended to hit with the edge of his fist first, sensing the movement his arm would have to make in order to hit the target properly. When he felt more confident in his ability to actually get a hit in the general area he was aiming at, he went for it, putting all his might behind the strike. It struck higher than he'd aimed, but this time it did, in fact, strike, and Castor felt as well as heard the dull thud of flesh and bone striking against the same. "How was that then?" He asked with a grin.

[Ricky Maze]

"Odis was my dog I took in after I lost me pa, he became the closest thing I could ever imagine as a brother." He explained before Castor apologized about his ordeal. It caught Ricky off guard for a moment but a humble smile came to his face right after. "No need to apologize mate, it led me to a dark place that only made me stronger. That's why I am who I am now, a protector to everything I care about." He pointed out with an easy attitude, but then focused more on the punch as Castor prepared for his next strike. He watched closely as Castor figured out where his target was, a slow motion strike to measure where his aim would be. "Good. Now strike when yer ready."

Castor pulled his arm into a hook and lurched his fist forward, the force behind it strong enough to get a reaction from Ricky even as he braced for its impact. He took in a deep breath in between.his teeth as he looked to see where the fist had landed. Pain radiated on one particular spot as he gave it a small rub, a proud grin to Castor at how well of a punch he threw. "Yer aim is a bit off but practice can help, but ya pack a pretty good arm there. Now ye just gotta get yer aim goin' strong and ye can sock the shyke outta anybody that means ill to ya." He mused with a chuckle as he stood slightly crouched before Castor.

"Now when ye stand like this yer able to keep on yer toes, yer lighter then me so yer definitely bound to be more agile.When yer in a fist fight be sure to keep both hands up before ya, kinda like me here." He demonstrated to Castor by pulling his arms up before his chest, fists closed with his fingers several inches his face. "Keep yer fists up to try and block any incomin' blows when yer opponent tries to punch ya, and when ya pull off a successful block try to go in for that kind of punch ya pulled earlier. Sock 'em hard in the face if possible, or if ye've got no other alternative a kick to their balls works too. If they have balls anyway." He mused as he stood straight up again, attention fully centered on Castor. "Now show me yer stance." He placed his hands at his hips as he waited to see Castor's stance, admiration grew for his friend at how fast he was learning.

"Ricky's words.", "Ricky's thoughts.", "Telion's words.", "Hannah's words.", "Other's words."

[Castor Riley]

Castor was starting to feel as though Ricky were pulling his leg, as he praised his amateurish attempts. He scratched the back of his head "I don't think I'm all that strong," he said, smirking. "Are you joking with me? I'm not still drunk, you know." He started to feel a bit worried though that he'd hurt his friend in his confidence that he couldn't possibly do so. Castor listened carefully to Ricky's instructions. He nodded along, noting the way Ricky brought his fists up in the position he was trying to teach him. Ricky looked very comfortable in his position of teaching his skills to others. Castor smiled. He'd probably be making a good dad for little Ricky-Rick. As Ricky finished his explanations and asked for a demonstration, Castor tried to use what he'd been shown. He lifted both fists in front of his face, holding them pretty close, elbows tucked in to his body, feet closed together. "Like this?" He asked, feeling rather silly.

[Ricky Maze]

Ricky laughed just a little when Castor seemed to think his leg was being pulled, and only shook his head with a rather proud grin. "Seriously mate, ye've got quite the power there. Actually did hurt just a bit." He assured Castor before he assumed position, he did pretty well to mirror the same stance Ricky did. "That's a pretty good start, but keep yer feet apart." He pointed out after observing Castor further. "Pull yer feet in like that and ya just might trip over yerself." He mused with a chuckle, although the possibility of doing so did exist.

The rest of Castor's form looked solid, a stance that seemed to fit a fighter in action. Now all he had to do was get some experience under his belt and he'd be off to a good start. "Now when yer in a fist fight mate best way to block their incoming blow is to hold yer arms like that, but sometimes when the swing out ye can block em early and leave em open for a blow." Ricky wasn't entirely sure how he was to help demonstrate this for Castor, but he figured the best way to learn was hands on experience. "Aight, aim for me head or chest and I'll show ya." He notioned for Castor to strike at him with his hands, then assumed his fighter stance he took earlier. He would wait and observe where Castor struck closely, and do his best to block the incoming blow. "And don't hold back.mind ya, this may be training but we won't learn nothin' if ya ain't willin' to get sore." He pointed right quick as he readied for an incoming blow.

"Ricky's words.", "Ricky's thoughts.", "Telion's words.", "Hannah's words.", "Other's words."

[Castor Riley]

At Ricky's suggestion, Castor spread his feet apart, settling more comfortably into the stance he'd been shown. He definitely felt that the move had improved his balance. He paid close attention as Ricky explained the uses of the defensive stance. He got a bit nervous when he started to talk about practical application, though he understood the necessity for it. "Let's try not to do any permanent damage though, ok?" He chuckled nervously, only half-joking. He decided to aim for Ricky's chest; if, somehow, Ricky didn't manage to block the blow, it would probably not be as bad. "Ok, here I go," he said, waiting a second or two for Ricky to prepare, before he aimed a punch at the centre of Ricky's chest and went for it., paying close attention to what Ricky would do to avoid it.

[Ricky Maze]

At Castor's rate of learning he could definitely prove to be a worthy defender, a protector to the friends of his home. No longer would Ricky be alone in his endeavor as he would come to find his friends would bear the weight of his burden as well. He had prepared one for the task today by helping him learn of ways to defend himself after all, so it was only a matter of time before all of the friends who supported him would soon have that support they too needed. Ricky's grin was a proud one when he saw Castor correct his footing, and his eyes were ever more focused on the arm that came to him. It was a midsection punch so that meant Castor aimed for the chest, a reasonable place to go for considering he didn't want to harm his friend. Ricky took his left arm, since Castor's punch came from his right, and positioned it to where the backhand was just before him. When Castor's fist had come close enough, Ricky timed it to where he would pull his left arm over and away, which would redirect the punch should it have been a more forceful one. Since there was no real intent to harm Castor's arm would only remain connected to Ricky's outer arm, as Ricky would point it out to Castor with the same grin from earlier.

"See here, the block pushes away the direction o' the punch when ye time it good enough, since ya weren't really intendin' to hurt me there was no pressure in gettin' the timin'. When ya are under pressure though ya gotta keep a cool and clear head, otherwise ya might pull too soon or too late." He straightened out once more with a pat on Castor's shoulder, a nod given to him as a proud teacher before he turned to retrieve his jacket. "That'll have to do t'day mate, ye learned quite a bit after all. Now just go home and meditate on what ya learned I guess, or practice on a pillow or somethin' ye can punch around. That'll help ya get yer aim improved." He pointed out as he fanned more of the cool air to him with the jacket after he slipped it on, he began to button the jacket up and turned to Castor once more. "T'morrow I'll be posted here again, same time too if ya want to get more practice in." He waited to hear what Castor had to say before anything, should he have any questions then Ricky would answer them with a smile still on his face.

"Ricky's words.", "Ricky's thoughts.", "Telion's words.", "Hannah's words.", "Other's words."

[Castor Riley]

Castor listened to his teacher's final instructions on blocking and the importance of timing one's move. He was glad that Ricky seemed pleased with his progress, though he felt the lesson was over before it could really begin. He was shocked to realise, by the position of Syna's sun in the sky, that at least a bell must have passed since he'd made his way towards the Pass. "Will do, Ricky-Rick!" He said, smiling, as he also gathered his shirt and began to button it up. "I think I might take you up on that offer. This whole fist-fighting thing has been very interesting. Plus, I really need to get some exercise. I've spent too much time in the Library," he said, though, really, he would never think that any amount of time in the library was too much. After he'd finished buttoning up his shirt, he turned to Ricky seriously. "Hey man, I just want you to remember, I'm here for you. Whatever you need, whenever. You know where to find me." Castor figured he was already in too deep for half-measures. Though Castor generally wanted to avoid getting involved in other people's business, he couldn't help himself when it came to friends or family. Though there was a high wall to climb in order to get into that inner circle of trust, once there it was even harder to get out. Somehow, Ricky had tunneled under that wall before he'd realised. Castor smiled. "That's what friends are for."