Flashback To be young again

[Karsynwa]

2nd of Fall, 489 AV (14 years old)

The day began as usual for the Umtasrad family. Early, with a quick bite to eat before they rushed out the door to get started on their days. For Karsynwa that meant grabbing a couple of maze wraps before rushing down to the Tuvya Sasaran. The maza flat bread this morning was filled with a goat cheese spread and chopped bits of salmon. Karsynwa ate it quickly on his way down to the school. Today they were supposed to have a guest teacher. Those lessons were usually the best in his opinion as they usually presented new techniques to challenge his friends with. Exiting his small apartment, he ran into his friend from across the hall. “Hello there Zeros, going to the Tuvya today?” He asked around a mouthful a maza wrap. Zerous frowned in disgust, and shook his head, joining him on his walk down the hall. “Chew first please, and where else am I to go? To the Kendoka, and let you get the edge on me. No way!” Zerous said in a rather patronizing tone, before busting out laughing. Karsynwa chuckled too, and hurried his pace as he scarfed down the last of his breakfast.

The nice thing about the Cora apartments was that they had the Tuvya as close as was practical, but the boys didn’t waste time going down to the large building. This was one of the best parts of their day. Far more entertaining than their stuffy classes in the Valkalah anyways. On the way the the building they caught up with a few other students who joined them on the winding path towards the school. To their right they had an excellent view of the city as it spiraled down the cliff towards the harbor below. Knowing later tonight he’d be able to run those streets with his friends, Karsynwa decided to get a head start on the race by trying be the first to the Tuvya. He was far from the fastest kid in his class though, and still had much of the awkwardness of youth in his limbs.

Stretching out his legs as far as they could go while he ran, Karsynwa shouted. “Last one to make it has to play the zith tonight.” He pushed past Zerous, and started gaining ground down the narrow winding trail. As he did, his leather shoes slapped loudly on the stone path, sliding briefly as he turned a sharp corner. That caused him to lose some speed and slowly some of the other boys started to catch up laughing. Karsynwa laughed all the louder for it, pushing his legs for all he could get out of them. When they entered the flat straight away toward the Tuvya, Karsynwa was tied with two of the boys while the rest of the group stretched out somewhere behind them. Then the two boy’s pacing him raced ahead and a few others came in line with him. Karsynwa was no longer laughing but had a determined look on his face as he pumped his legs the final few meters to the edge of the Tuvya. The boys who made it first immediately started cheering with Karsynwa making it a few ticks later. He looked around to make sure he wasn’t last, and was relieved when he saw a few stragglers walking the rest of the way in. Zerous was bringing up the rear of the group. “Looks like you’re it tonight Zerous.” The boy who had ended up winning the contest shouted, and as a group they entered the training area. Karsynwa hesitated at the door, giving Zerous a sidelong grin before going inside with the rest.


Upon entering they were ushered towards the large main room that was usually only used for special ceremonies, and the crowd of boys quieted appropriately after leaving their shoes at the door. When they entered, they saw the head of the school, Ishmail, was seated beside a much shorter man with a curious left arm. It was blue, a deeper blue than the rest of his skin that had silver veins running through it. The students reigned in their tongues however as Ishmail was deep in conversation with the man. Karsynwa lied up in an orderly row with the rest of the students while he sized up their new instructor. Even as young as he was at fourteen, he was almost as tall as this man, and some in his class were as tall as him. What they had on him in height however, they missed out in muscle. The man was thick of limb, waist, and chest, with a squared jaw to match the harsh cut of his face. Karsynwa smiled. He hoped he would be the first to challenge this man.

[Karsynwa]

Ismail wrapped up their discussion and stood up, gesturing towards the gathered students. “This is Vovor Vizerian, and he’s come as a guest instructor today. He has a few things he wants to share before we begin, so everyone take a seat.” Ismail said, waiting till everyone had sat down before sitting himself. Vovor glanced at Ishmail before going to stand in front of the assembled class. “I have agreed today to teach your class in exchange for the chance to speak with you all about Izurdin, god of strength, patience, and industry. Something we can all value in these times. I came here out of all the foreign cities because your race is a strong one, that much is evident upon seeing what you all have created here. Where as my words might have fell on deaf ears elsewhere, I hope to find yours more receptive. I—” Karsynwa was having a hard time paying attention to the common this man was using and his boring, flat tone. He looked sidelong at Zerous who just gave him a subtle shake of the head. “— together with Izurdin, you might see the power of pure creation. For now I am content to offer my services as a weapon smith for the duration of my stay, and my words for any who will listen. An remember my words carefully. Strength, patience, and industry. These are the ideals of Izurdin. By giving these their proper due in your life, you pay homage to Izurdin with your craftsmanship and training.”

“Oldest five boys first” Ismail called out. Karsynwa and Zerous immediately stood up with three other boys and inclined their head towards Ishmail. Then turning to Vovor, they inclined them again. “This man is an Isur which for the purposes of this lesson means don’t try to strike his left arm. Not if you value the bones in your hand. Focus on the rest of him, that is the challenge. If he gets you down first, take your seat and let the next boys jump in.” Karsynwa nodded eagerly, inching forward. Vovor shifted to hold up his left arm between him and the group of boys that slowly worked to try surrounding him.

Things were calm for a moment till one of the boys got antsy. They charged the Isur from the side, their fist wrapped up in a tight ball. Vovor dipped it in a move that looked far more agile than he was capable of. He grabbed the akalak’s next punch by the wrist and then Zerous went for a grab on that big blue arm of his. Whipping that arm back he slung Zerous off of him, before twisting the wrist of the boy who was still trying to strike him with his free arm. The boy gritted his teeth, promptly stopping his swings to try prying off Vovor’s fingers from his wrist. Karsynwa stepped into range then, and tried a move his instructors had discussed the previous day. Just as he got close, he slid into his attack trying to strike the man’s leg with the heel of his foot. He fumbled the move though. Vovor caught his ankle with that special arm of his and lifted him up.

That might have been the end of his turn if it hadn’t been for the final boy, and Zerous coming in at the same time. Vovor dropped him, an released the other boy too so he could block the two incoming attacks. Karsynwa didn’t get much time to see though as he nearly fell on his shoulder. Only a jerky twist in the air spared him of that so that he landed on his back before rolling over on his stomach. The drop hadn’t been very far anyways, but still it smarted as he quickly came up to his feet. He needed to get better at rolling like Zerous so he didn’t waste time like this. Something to keep in mind for later he decided. Right now, he wanted to beat this Isur.

[Karsynwa]

The five of them were spread around Vovor like before, some a little worse for wear than others. Karsynwa’s shoulder ached, the boy who had his wrist twisted was rubbing it occasionally, and Zerous has sustained a cut above his right eye which trickled a little blood down the side of his dark blue face. They were all breathing fast save for the Isur who breathed in through his mouth, and slowly out through his nose. Panting, Karsynwa tried to slow his breathing as well, breathing in heavily through his nose and out through his mouth. Vovor smirked. Karsynwa snorted, and locked eyes with the Isur. “On your count Zerous.” He said with a smirk, thinking he finally thought of a way around this Vovor’s advantages.

Zerous lunged, and the rest of them follow. Facing the Isur’s left, Karsynwa approached cautiously. He reached for the arm which Vovor held out like a shield, but instead of going for it, he kicked out at the side of the man’s knee. While he did this, the four other boys tried attacks of their own. Vovor surprised them all with his reaction, sweeping the legs out from Zerous and another boy with a clean kick of his right leg. He caught the wrist of another, but two of the strikes went through. Karsynwa’s and the other boys. Unfortunately Karsynwa’s didn’t seem to have much effect besides a slight bent of his knee after his foot struck solid muscle. The other boy’s was marginally more successful as he had height on the man, and went for a grab around his neck. He quickly realized the folly of that when Vovor had no more distractions. The Isur promptly hurled the boy off, and rubbed the side of his leg.

“Not bad, lets try the next group.” Ishmail interrupted, and the Isur let go of the last boy’s wrist. Karsynwa didn’t want to go, but he obeyed his instructor, taking back his spot seated near the front of the group.

After everyone had gotten their try at the Isur, the class was concluded early. Of course, Karsynwa lined up with the rest of the students to leave though he looked back at the Isur more than one time as they were lead out. Maybe tomorrow he’d get some more answers. That was, if the Isur came back which Karsynwa hoped was the case. Though if it wasn’t he expected his instructors would have some lesson about it. He tried to reflect on what that lesson would be while he put on his shoes and headed off towards the Valkalah Academy. It was a much longer route than this morning, so Karsynwa took it at a jog. Initially stretched his legs out as far as they could, which slowed him down some, so he went back to his regular gait, and not pushing his body so hard right out the gate.

[Karsynwa]

Once he’d established some sort of rhythm, his mind settled into working on the mental problem from before. How had that Isur managed all of them. Certainly they got a few kicks in, but not as much as they should have. It wasn’t their first time sparring, and he was disappointed he hadn’t made a better showing. There was also the fact that smirked at his attempt to control his breathing without telling him what he was doing wrong. Something clicked in his head at that, and he slowed down to a fast walk as he worked his way up a steep incline towards Kyloe’s Butcher Shop. Maybe that had been the purpose of the lesson after all, to try and extract what they could from field experience. They were nearing their trials after all, and had alluded to this ‘experience’ even if he hadn’t seen a practical example yet. He’d suspected they’d take them on a group hunt, but perhaps this was something to get them started on that path.

Well if that was the lesson, what had he learned from that fight? That Isur had a really strong left. That they were heavier and faster than they looked. They also had a unique approach to unarmed combat with that left of theirs, using it as an impenetrable shield. He was only guessing at that last part though his instructor did advise them not to strike that side. There had also been something about that god of theirs. Izurdin? Yeah, that was the name. Something about patience, industry and strength, concepts any Riverian were familiar with. It might do him some good to learn more of this Izurdin if he really did stand for those concepts, and he had no reason to mistrust the Isur. Maybe he’d ask his father about it over lunch.

For now, he’d worked his way past the Night tower and was walking alongside the Gilia medical center. As he made his way up yet another steep path, he tried running again. With the angle of the climb this involved him hiking his knees up higher and even involving his hands occasionally as he practically clawed his way up the incline. The sprint was fierce as it was brief, with him left panting after the few short meters to the top. He could see the academy now, with the great gates rising up in the distance behind it. Karsynwa decided to strip off his chest leathers then and rinse off in a little waterwork that was running in a line beside him. Duly refreshed, he redressed and walked the rest of the way to the Academy. He’d spent enough energy that he wouldn’t be fidgety in class. Hopefully.

Before the lessons though came the guided meditation. It was probably the part Karsynwa like the least, especially on days like this when there were a lot of new faces. New people meant that they would probably go through the basics again which tended to drag out the class longer that its reapportioned time. He wasn’t too bothered by it today though as he was still mulling his way through that fight with the Isur. Some quiet time to think might actually be good for him to sort out what he needed to know before tomorrow at the Tuvya. Karsynwa took a seat near the back, crossing his legs and taking a seat on one of the corner mats. Placing his hands on his knees, he closed his eyes.

[Karsynwa]

That Isur didn’t throw any punches which seemed odd to him in retrospect. Was that prearranged, or a part of the man’s fighting style? “Everyone close your eyes as we walk through this morning’s meditation.” An instructor spoke, and Karsynwa figured that the room had finally filled up. “Now when you hear the bell, I want you to take a deep breath in through your nose, and release it slowly out through your mouth. This is to help you relax. It will also focus your mind, though for now I don’t want you to focus on anything in particular.” Karsynwa focused on the instructor’s voice. Taking in a deep breath, he filled his chest before slowly releasing that breath.

This was not unlike the breathing he had seen the Isur use during their fight. He wondered if that had anything to do with his technique or if it was genuinely useful during a fight. Karsynwa was leaning towards the latter as the Isur hadn’t seemed particularly winded during the fight. Then again, he hadn’t been doing much moving around.

“Just focus on taking that deep breath, and releasing it very slowly.” Their voice was getting closer now, Karsynwa peeked to see the instructor walking down the center row that ran between the assembled students. He promptly closed them again, and took another deep intake of breath. Slowly the tension in his shoulders and back relaxed. His mind drifted back to the fight. Could have been that he had been so conservative with his movements for a different reason. Perhaps he didn’t want them to know his technique though he didn’t know why that would be. They’d listened to him about Izurdin after all. Had this just been for culture exposure then? He wouldn’t put it past his instructors. Ismail was always looking for opportunities to inject the academies subjects into their morning exercises.

That sounded closer to the mark. Ismail was always counseling them to listen to their elders but to think for themselves at the same time. He’d have to ask his classmates about it later to see where their thoughts lie. It would be good for them to approach tomorrow with their ideas focused. “That’s it for this morning’s meditation exercises.” The instructor said upon reaching the end of the room, and the class seemed to collectively breathe a sigh of relief at this. Might just have been them releasing the last deep breath they took in, though he preferred to think of it as an expression of sheer relief. It was more fun that way Karsynwa thought with a smirk.

[Karsynwa]

His first lesson of the day was with instructor Mydler, who specialized in Akalak history. Karsynwa didn’t mind this part of his day too much. The stories often had great battles or martial triumphs that made them at least a little bit interesting. He took a seat towards the back of the class, and worked at cleaning his nails while he waited for the instruction to begin. This being one of the smaller classrooms there were only fifteen students. They all sat on mats with little wooden tables set in front of them. On the tables rested a quill, ink, and parchment paper. The room was lit by torches burning at the corners of the room, venting through the subtle holes carved in the ceiling. Fortunately, the wait for Mydler was not long.

Mydler,wearing leathers and a brown tunic, came in with a bundle of parchment. He set these down on a table before walking to the front of the room. “Who remembers where we left off yesterday?” The instructor asked as he shuffled through something on his tall desk at the center of the room. A student raised his hand off towards the left side of the room, and Mydler acknowledged him with a nod. “We had just covered the sinking of Valkhalah, the original home of the Akalak.” The boy said promptly. Karsynwa recognized him as Nistw who was a year younger than him. He’d sparred with him on occasion and if he remembered correctly, the boy favored a staff.

“Yes, so today we are going to discuss the founding of Riverfall which laid the groundwork for the culture we will be exploring together in future lessons.” Mydler said after a moment, drawing out a piece of parchment from the pile and angling it towards the torchlight. “We are also going to read over the few personal accounts we have that refer to that time at the end of today’s lesson.” Mydler set down the parchment and walked over to stand a few feet from the first row of students. “Now as Nistw remembered, in our last lesson Valkhalah had been destroyed due to the cataclysm that swept across the world. This left our people scattered underground during this difficult time. Not much is known about this period because everyday was simply a fight to survive so most of what we know of this period comes well after these events. However that is not to say that we don’t have first hand accounts from this time. We are a naturally long lived race so there were a few survivors who had the mind to write things down once everything became more settled. It is from these brave few voices that we draw much of our knowledge and inspiration for digging into the past.”

“It was when Cauldric Chivan gathered up the remaining Akalak to form what would become Riverfall, that these accounts start to become interesting. Before this record keeping mostly dealt with taking a census, and keeping track of supplies. There were also those who wrote about the families lost in the cataclysm which we will read at the end of the lesson. They are the reason we know what few facts we do about what life in Valkhalah was like. Then Cauldric Chivan started putting the word out that he’d found a place to start building a new home. Through brilliance and charm, he convinced the survivors to rally behind him to lay the ground work for what would become the great city of Riverfall you see today. Cauldric had three sons before he passed on in 300 AV, names you should recognize if you have been paying attention in your other lessons. Nevar, Baldic, and Typhus Chivan. Nevar, the eldest son, is the leader of Riverfall while Baldic operates the Sattui Vineyard, and Typhus, the youngest son, runs the Coalinga Gem mines. The history of the Chivan’s could be a class by itself so we will not go into them much today, but obviously a lot of what we know is because of that families efforts uniting our ancestors behind a common cause.”

“So, with that said, I want each of you to come to the table here and grab a piece of parchment along with a candle. Read the parchment carefully as I will be questioning each of you before you leave about the material.” They all nodded in deference to the instructor before going to do as asked.