Solo A Duelist's Dance

[Keene Ward]

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The sixteenth day of winter 514 AV

"Kick. Good, switch." Keene, perched atop a new pillar that was slightly higher than the few the previous days teetered for a moment, pulling his raised leg down to the precarious surface before lifting his other. "Jump next time." He nodded, arms out and knee bent as he wobbled for a few ticks to find his center. Once he found it, the wobbling decreased significantly, though his body never reached a point of stillness. "Kick." He did so, foot rushing forward. Keene kept supporting leg bent, and checked the motion of his other leg to keep it from overextending and throwing him too far off balance. Teetering as he pulled back from the strike into the air, Keene kicked out a few more times to adjust his placement of weight. For a moment, he felt his balance fail, but a quickly extended leg with a smaller wave of his arms pulled him back, his leg straining to keep him attached to the small stone pylon. "Switch." Not quite steady, Keene followed the command anyway, hopping from one foot to the other.

He knew he was falling before it happened, the tick of weightlessness that continued far longer than he intended was the first thing to clue him in. As his shin bounced off of the corner of the stone and his face headed for the sand, Keene curled towards the impact, smashing into the ground and turning so that the impact rolled from one shoulder to the next. The pain, however, was focused mostly on his shin and the scrape of the initial fall on his shoulder. Pushing himself up, Keene limped back to the stone, taking a few ticks to walk around it while the throbbing pain in his shin slow began to calm enough that he felt relatively confident he could stand without grimacing. Atziri patiently waited for him to hop back up onto the stone. It was not the first time he'd fallen, and as he re-situated himself with a concentrated frown, Keene was certain it wouldn't be the last. With one leg throbbing and the other already trembling beneath his weight, Keene kicked forward, the motion slightly slower than usual as he shifted his balance to compensate for the arc of his foot. "Don't lean back. Keep your torso in one place and don't overextend. Again."

Doing what he could to keep his body in relatively one place, Keene continued to kick forward. Each time, he was given more instruction, and by the time be managed to finally keep himself steady as his foot was extended, Atziri called for him to switch. The jump to switch legs was successful, but Keene had underestimated the pain of a bruised shin taking the full brunt of his weight - and while it was not an incredible amount of muscle and bone, it was more than enough to pull a smalled, muted shout of pain before he hopped down to the ground on his uninjured leg. Atziri held a hand up to keep him from jumping back up on the pole to try again. "Jump around a little, Keene, get used to the pain. It's not going anywhere." There was a hint of bitterness to the statement, but Keene paid it little attention. Instead, he did as she suggested. At first, he hopped carefully, wincing at the throb of pain, but soon he was able to switch without too much trouble. His leg still hurt, but his body had partially acclimated to it, letting him put it weight on it without immediately forcing him to relent.

Rolling his shoulders to alleviate a small bit of pain the form of a hitch about his shoulder blade, Keene climbed back atop the stone pillar, bouncing up and down in a meticulous rhythm to further test his body's adjustment to the pain in his shin. Finding it acceptable enough, Keene steadied himself and returned to the exercise, kicking and switching when Atziri called it. Her critiques on his form continued, and Keene found that the proper way to kick was not only something that didn't throw him off balance nearly as much, but also a more comfortable movement. Once Atziri decided it was time to spar and had cleared the area to do so, she had him remove his clothing once more down to his small clothes. As Keene finished folding his pants and setting them on the table, Atziri stood with arms crossed and eyes expectant. "Alight, kick."

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[Keene Ward]

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As Atziri was quick to point out, there were several different ways to kick. The one he had been practicing was intended to strike a person with the ball of the foot, while another she introduced to him involved a small amount of torque to strike with the side of the heel. The latter was difficult for him, and though they had been working on flexibility among other things, Keene preferred the more direct approach. The slight turn of the the heel strike offset him more often than not during the half bell Atziri spent coaching him on it, and as they slowly rounded each other, hands raised and feet light - with the ultimatum that kicks were now to be focused on - Keene allocated mental resources to the ground below him, the space between them, and the woman before him.

Using his hand to fight rather than his magic meant several things that he had begun to discover over the course of the training. Firstly, his thoughts revolved around survival rather than dominance, something foreign and, strangely enough, exhilarating. Secondly, without the aid of his more practiced abilities, his mind was his greatest weapon, observation his greatest ally. Magic was similar in a sense, but if he could keep distance then he had plenty of time to problem solve. In the heat of bare handed combat, however, things were too close, too fast, for him to calmly think things over. Instead, his mind whirred in a flurry of analysis, not just regarding his opponent but the entire environment around him. He'd never really thought much about how the world around him had its own effect, aside from whether elements were readily available, when it came to fighting. Finally, he had begun to find the true limitations of his body. There were directions his limbs moved that he'd never stopped to consider might be useful, but there were also points at which his body could move no more. Fatigue too, was something he was becoming more aware of, as well as how far he could push past it.

Trading blows with Atziri, Keene kept his distance. Kicking was useful in that it allowed him a slightly longer range of attack, but difficult in that close quarters reduced it to a knee at best. As Atziri hesitated for a moment, pausing once Keene took a step forward, he quickly lashed out his foot, taking care to make sure the ball of his foot was pointed at his target, rather than his toes. She slammed her forearm into his shin in a downward sweep, knocking it to the side and forcing him to turn so that his back was partially exposed. A few quick strikes to his side send him shuffling backwards in retreat, eyes darting to make sure she did not follow. "Faster." He nodded, continuing to circle. His leg stung from where she had deflected his kick, but he found it hadn't hurt nearly as badly as his earlier fall. The leg in question still throbbed, but it had become little more than a side thought, at least until he kicked out with it. Atziri twirled around his attack, slapping the leg as she came to rest perpendicular to him. The quick and forceful application of her shielded hands aggravated the bruise, and as his foot hit the ground, Keene hopped back, tucking the leg beneath him for a few ticks before he felt able to stand on it.

"Push through it, Keene." She charged then, her own legs carrying her in close while her fists darted towards his face. Ducking the first blow and knocking the second aside, Keene retreated further to increase the distance, but a solid kick to his stomach knocked him form his feet, sending him slamming into the ground behind him. Had he rolled, the impact wouldn't have been nearly as breath stealing, however the attack had come as far too much of a surprise for him to gather his thoughts enough to minimize the damage of the fall. Inhaling the lost air in between coughs, Keene struggled into a seated position, arms resting on raised knees. Usually he would have gotten a break, but Atziri clapped her hands impatiently, "Stand up! Keep pushing, Initiate." He obeyed, pulling himself to his feet and sinking back into his fighting stance. His chest still burned from the fall, but he let his mind focus on the task at hand instead, shuffling forward to take a few jabs before retreating into a kick. "Good."

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[Keene Ward]

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Atziri had grown far more aggressive than he was used to, keeping him moving about the sand constantly, sometimes at a slow shuffle other times at a rapid hop just short of a run. He stopped when he could, lashing out at her with a leg or arm before she inevitably charged to force him on the defensive. The time spent rehearsing the different stances and blocks served him well enough, though plenty of punches and knees made their way though his partially reflexive barrier. As they continued, Keene quickly found himself running short of breath. He kept his motions as quick as he could: ducking, diving, rolling, blocking, and darting around the sandy area with what speed he could muster. The constant onslaught of attacks, however, made him tire very quickly. Jabs and roundhouses he knew he could avoid began to land as he simply lacked the speed and strength to defend against them, choosing instead to shift his weight or motion to reduce the impacts. Of course, he could only roll with so many punches before even that became to difficult.

By the time Atziri called for them to stop, Keene's body was coated in sweat, his breath moving in heavy rushes as his lungs strained for more and more air. The throbbing bruises had been replaced by a slight tingle through his whole body, and where he did not feel the little sparks of feeling, he felt only a strange, heavy numbness. Staring with bleary eyes, Keene continued to sway, his body still responding to the now phantom strikes that Atziri had pounded into him - though they had not been of a caliber to cause more than light bruising where he had failed to defend himself repeatedly. Atzrir walked around him, arms crossed and eyes searching. Keene followed her movements with his eyes, turning when she moved to far into his peripheral vision. He moved as she moved, though is feet remained in the same general spot. Standing still was restful enough that he didn't feel the need to crumble to the ground and sleep as he had only ticks before. As she walked, Atziri never broke eye contact, staring intently.

After a chime or so, Atziri charged him again. Immediately responding, Keene slid back into his fighting stance. Though his form suffered from the effort it took to stand ready, Keene was hardly aware he had done so. The first punch was brush aside, Keene's body straining to follow his mind. The following kick hit hard, knocking him to the ground. This time, however, Keene forced himself to roll with the impact, wobbling to his feet with the help of the twisting momentum. He swayed for a few ticks, and Atziri grinned, standing straight and tall as she let him rest. "Go drink something." He nodded, stumbling at first before getting a better hold of his body as he moved from the sand to the table, uncapping his waterflask and letting the refreshing liquid rush down his parched throat. He had not realized how much water his body needed after only a few bells of training. Not allowing himself to sit, Keene paced the cavern, letting his breathing calm and the tingling numbness of his body begin to fade.

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[Keene Ward]

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By the time Atziri called him over, Keene's body had traded its numbness for a thorough ache that seemed to emanate from his bones, starting the marrow and spreading out over him like some strange heat. Atziri pointed to the ground before her, a little grin on her lips as she took a seat. He followed suit, easing down to the ground to find that his legs immediately felt like a massive weight had been lifted from them. Atziri spread her legs into a straddle, the limbs pointing out at an obtuse angle that, at first, appeared to be a straight line. Following suit, Keene found his flexibility to be sorely lacking in all respects of the word. The red headed woman chuckled, pulled herself forward so that Keene's feet pressed against her legs. The added pressure to his crotch made him flinch, but Keene remained resolute, clenching his jaw and keeping his eyes focused on her face. "Hands up." The moment he removed his hands from where they had been supporting him, Keene felt the tension increase as his knees turned slightly farther out. "Keep your focus, Keene, look at me."

She had her hands up in front of her, "Practice your punches." His hands darted forward, firsts slapping against her sturdy palms. Each motion just reminded him exactly what little flexibility he had. "Faster." His speed increased marginally, his muscles still exhausted from the earlier session. Atziri slapped one of his punches away with little effort, a small frown tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Keene, hit me." He nodded, putting more force into his punches. Some pulled him forward, others knocked him slightly back, however his base was substantial enough he never broke the straddle. Several times he tried to bend his knees, which was rewarded with Atziri grabbing his ankles and pulling his feet slightly farther apart. After the second time, Keene kept his legs as straight as possible.

After a time had passed, Keene legs didn't hurt nearly as much, and they switched to a new position, then one after that as so on, stretching through the different parts of the body and practicing other elements where it was applicable. In a shallow lunge, as it was all he could manage, Atziri stalked around him, nudging and shoving him as he tried to keep balance. He was especially poor at that, but by the time they had finished, his body felt better than it had since he could remember. It was still sore, battered, and bruised, but not nearly as tense as it had been. As Keene redressed himself, Atziri disappeared into her chambers, leaving him alone with his water and handful of seeds and fruit from their stores.

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[Aoren]

Keene

Experience

Skill	XP Earned
Unarmed Combat	+4 EXP
Boxing	+3 EXP
Acrobatics	+4 EXP
Endurance	+3 EXP

Lores

•	Lore Earned
•	Acrobatics: Maintaining Balance Atop Precarious Surfaces
•	Unarmed Combat: Performing Exercises Atop Precarious Surfaces
•	Unarmed Combat: Various Methods of Kicking

Notes :

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