Closed Honing the Finer Edge

[Ricky Maze]

Honing the Finer Edge
Spring 7th 513 AV, 9th Bell
Location: Mirahil Pass

The pass was lit up well with the pleasantly warm kiss of Syna’s light as Ricky walked through the undergrowth at the base of the mountains, the shade and wonderfully moist kiss of the sea within the breeze kept the air at a slight chill each day as the weather proved to live up to its temperamental name. Zetliva was awash with new tides as the year progressed sluggishly yet even in the long everlasting cycle events still somehow seemed to move rather quickly, for instance Ricky’s start in training just to better his abilities, the sudden cause to change a little bit about his appearance with the new tattoos he just recently bought the other day. Things moved at an incredible pace these days and all the more Ricky couldn’t really do anything besides keep up, keep up and attempt to make his own pace out of the day to day activities he faced himself with.

As he walked the terrain floor he found a spacious clearing that could very well serve for today’s agenda, small of course compared to the wide open shore of Mathew’s Bay but still bountiful in room to practice a few of the tricks Ricky has learned with his longsword. Hence why he was dressed in his worn clothes today rather than the good clothing he had at home, which consisted of the much worn white vest and the very faded green linen trousers he wore upon first setting out on his journey. Strapped to his leather belt was his old traveling tool that made his journeys before only a little bit safer, the iron longsword he bought in order to provide a better chance of survival out in the wilderness. Yet there’d been much experiences shared with this blade, the journey alone a fitting example to start with of course. However it wasn’t until his return to Zeltiva the weapon truly became a very important extension of his right arm, when times of danger threatened his life or the lives of those important to him.

Yet he had much to learn and much to practice still, even if he’d grown to be oh so familiar with the blade. As he slowly drew it from the scabbard the blade gave a weak sigh in its release, free at last to taste the air as he gave the weapon a few clockwise twirls with his wrist. Aside from the shortsword which he found interesting to try and learn, he knew good and well the balance of his longsword. The weight of the blade, the power in the strikes, they were all something he was accustomed to after dedicated practice. Yet what was most important now was how he used his learned skills to apply to new ones he’d yet to discover, this explained his reason why he was here as of now of course. The difference bein’ Oi gotta t’ink o’ somethin’ new if Oi wanna learn anyt’in. This was a notion best followed with creativity and fact, so what sword techniques did he know? Well he knew basic attacks and several other tricks to help give him an edge, but something to hone his edge into a finer point was in demand as of now. So what could he do?

Hm… He looked around and thought for a moment, looked at the undergrowth and recalled an occasion similar to this. Back in Alvadas he’d practiced his swings to not just get a better feel of the weight, but also discover ways to flourish his blade for more powerful blows. If he could manage that by beating some bushes, then surely the same concept could help him here and now. So… Bushes ‘ere an’ dere… hm… His mind started to connect an idea, one that involved the basic jump strike he could perform. Sure enough it was good to be able to leap through the air and put all his weight into one harsh blow, maybe even pull it off in a flourish when the moment gets critical… yet if he could time it perfectly, then maybe he could even get several blows in before the main strike follows. Good t’ try it den. He assured himself with a nod.

As he positioned his feet apart well enough for a good jump forward he slightly crouched and held his longsword straight up with both hands, eyes deadlocked on a particular bush he envisioned as an enemy to be defeated. He counted to a third tick before he took in a great amount of air, then pushed his left leg with all his might as he jolted forward, sword brought around from his right as he made a crossover slash to his left with somewhat of a roar. Of course with his balance sent forward and thrown off from the unusual change in attack plan, the weight of his weapon dragged him too far to the left as it whipped through the air and cleaved just the top of the shrub. He staggered just a little bit as he caught hold over his footing once more, reassured that he once again remained in control of his balance and weight after a moment or two. Petch! That’s ‘ard t’ actually do! He scoffed at his poor display of control, and became aware of the amount of experimentation in force he would need before he’d gotten this addition to his strikes down.

[Yuri Lehrer]

Yuri had woken up as he had always done, relieving himself, then performing his Broadsword Kata for a few chimes, it was becoming easier for Yuri to perform the series of strikes, blocks and stance changes every time he did it, to make sure he was awake, then made himself some food from the rations in his pack Perhaps I should get some more soon... or I could try my hand at hunting... This thought passed though Yuri's mind when he saw that he had about 4 days rations left. After his breakfast Yuri decided that he was going to have a walk in the surrounding area, to locate a larger area to practice leaping strikes and more elaborate flourishes to confuse and possibly disarm his opponents.

Walking for several chimes, Yuri ended up in a treeline, looking out at an area which almost matched his thoughts perfectly, except for one thing... there was already someone there, and if Yuri wasn't mistaken he knew the person in the area, thinking to himself What was his name again... I saw him on my birthday barely 3 days ago... Mick... Micky? Oh... Right, it's Ricky. as this minor revelation settled in, Yuri sat back and observed Ricky from the shadows of the treeline, watched as he slowly drew a sword, from the length of the blade Yuri guessed it to be a broadsword like his own or a longsword, he watched as Ricky twirled the sword around a few times before looking around the clearing, his eyes seemed to skip over the spot which Yuri was observing from, seemingly looking around at the bushes, which if Yuri was correct in his thinking, could imitate training dummies.

Ricky seemed to nod to himself, as though trying to convince himself that something would work, like Yuri did sometimes when he was going to try something new, then he took a stance, feet apart as though preparing for a jump, knees bent so as to prepare him even further for a jumping strike, he seemed to be particularly focused on one of the bushes in front of him, Yuri couldn't tell which bush, just that he was facing in a particular direction. Before Yuri could even imagine what Ricky was going to do, the big man sprung, quite literally, into action, pushing off from the ground, quite hard, Yuri thought, and swiped his blade, crossing his body from right to left, it was so hard the blade made a sound almost akin to a roar, it was a powerful blow to be sure, but because Ricky had leaped at the same time as he had swiped, his momentum worked against him, and threw him off balance, his strike missed the top of the shrub which Yuri supposed he was aiming for, if barely.

When he landed, Ricky staggered, regaining control after but a few moments, then he scoffed, as though disappointed with the result, that is when Yuri decided to make himself known, sheathing his own sword so Ricky wouldn't mistake him as a threat, he walked out from the treeline he had be observing Ricky from, and announced his presence by clearing his throat, and then calling out to the big man in a friendly manner "That was an impressive show of force Ricky, but it lacked control, in my experience, that basically means you need less force behind your blows and more control and synergy, sort of like..." Trailing off, Yuri drew his own blade and made his way over to the same bush Ricky had just missed with his powerful blow, and proceeded to unleash several swift, and some powerful strikes against it, as though he was practicing his Kata, this time on a material being. Some of the strikes missed but not by much, as Yuri had practiced this exact routine barely ten chimes ago "This, although I have practiced this specific combination of attacks for a while." Yuri finished his sentence when he landed the last blow of his Kata, then sheathed his sword once more. "I do have a question for you though, why are you up here in the first place, I thought that you were a member of the Wave Guard and had to defend the city." Yuri finished speaking and leaned against the nearest tree, waiting to hear Ricky's reply.

[Ricky Maze]

From the shadows of the trees and undergrowth another stepped out from the natural camouflage around him and revealed himself to Ricky, it was the man Ricky remembered to call Yuri the day they both met with Ariann. In fact it was only around three days ago or so since Ricky encountered the man, and learned well enough he’d aged another year just as the rest of Mizahar did. Sure enough Ricky thought it odd how he was given instruction from someone that didn’t use a longsword, but then again he considered the likelihood of their weapons in terms of weight and power, and then found himself rather intrigued with the instruction. "Control an’ synergy huh?" That was sort of what using a shortsword required, only the control was abundant to where one could easily alter their course in the midst of a swing. He definitely needed to pick back up on training with that weapon, but that would happen eventually. For now he had much to focus on, much to prepare for if he were to better hone his edge.

The display he watched Yuri provide proved interesting, as not very many of the swings landed on the intended target, but still the control of the swings seemed to flow evenly with the distributed weight of the blade. From watching that display Ricky concluded well enough that he needed to worry less about the force of his blade, and more over the sway and control in the direction his sword went. "Oi am a member o’ de Guard laddie," He reiterated with a chuckle, "but a man’s gotta keep his edge sharp some’ow now don’t ‘e?" He rested the longsword on his right shoulder and took a moment to consider what exactly Yuri was doing here, sure enough the young man looked to probably further train but why? What was his motive? Why discipline his self so when he should live, live and learn while he was still but a young fellow. "If ye don’t mind me askin, why ‘re ye so focused on trainin? What’s got ya so focused on discipline dat ye need t’ prepare for?" He asked with a genuine look of not necessarily concerned but care enough, it was in his nature after all to try and be the role model future generations could look up. So why not ask Yuri? Why not see if he could bring some light to the subject, and maybe even give a word of wisdom for the young man to use.

As he waited and listened he resumed the same position as before, legs spread apart as he completely focused on that one specific bush. The other two nearby were fitting targets to attempt to hit too, but of course getting them all in one jump would prove tricky without proper use of control. He thought back to the moment where he lost his balance and just barely caught ground upon landing, the amount of power put into one swing not carefully measured before the jump. He mulled over it in his head several times as he listened to Yuri’s answer, and then before he answered he pounced off the ground once again with a grunt. The arc the blade was held in changed to an high over-cross angle that swept from his right to the left and slashed at the first bush in sight, but upon the roundabout swing from the left his blade went too high and thus missed the target. Once he’d landed he cursed under his breath at the result, only one hit out of three and the third wasn’t even attempted. He had to hold onto that synergy he’d grasped if he intended to fully hit all three targets in one jump.

oocI’ll end my post here and resume with Ricky responding to whatever Yuri decides to say.

[Aoren]

Riddled With Rewards Ricky Experience Skill XP Earned Weapon: Longsword + 2 EXP Lores • Lore Earned • Longsword: The Weight of a Blade • Longsword: Balanced Stance Yuri Experience Skill XP Earned Observation + 1 EXP Socialization +1 EXP Lores • Lore Earned • Observation: Spotting Ricky Maze From A Distance Notes : If you have comments, questions or concerns please approach me at your earliest convenience. Don't forget to edit/delete your request in the request thread!