2nd Trial of Cylus in the Arc 707
(16 Years Old)
Nic folded his arms over his chest, his dark gaze was brisk and skimmed her quickly, "well," he sighed eventually, “you’ll do.”(16 Years Old)
It was cold and her breath fogged when it left her lips. She shivered in her jerkin and yet he still gestured for her to remove it. Her eyes narrowed in a scowl, but she obeyed without question. She folded the woollen layer and set it down in the hard sand of the practise court; noting as she did, that ice crystals were formed between the grains. Her scowl deepened but she straightened, determined not to complain.
“Three laps,” he pointed at the wooden railing and she followed his arm. Elyna nodded once and set off, trotting to the edge of the sand-court. She performed the three laps and by the end, she was no longer shivering, her steps started to slow and she heard him shout from the centre, “three more, faster!” She pushed on, feet crunching on the sand, flicking it up. His shout to carry on, continued until she was warmed through. Her breath came hard and sweat trailed down the back of her neck by the time he allowed her to stop. Excited and eager for the rest of the lesson, she jogged back toward him.
“Legs shoulder width apart, knees bent a little,” He laid hands on her shoulders and straightened her shoulders, lifting her head a little before nodding. She flinched at the touch, but it was something she would grow used to under his tutelage. She was lucky that he had agreed to take her on. Nic usually took group lessons of younger Squires or airmen for the Skyriders, but she had approached him one day and asked if there was anything she could do, to improve her fledgling abilities. He’d met her gaze with his sternest look. She had been surprised by his agreement. It was an agreement with conditions and its drawbacks. He had explained that he started training early each morning and would be prepared to pass additional knowledge on, if she would join him before dawn rose. So here she was. No longer shivering, fizzing with excitement.
He gestured for her to step forward and meet him toe to toe, “now, the first thing to learn about unarmed combat?”
“How to hit?” She answered readily, it seemed obvious and she was surprised by his laugh. His dark hair was cut short and peppered with grey at the temples. He was a heavier set man and not much taller than her own 5 feet and 4 inches.
“How to fall,” he corrected her lifting a hand, “followed by how to block, how to dodge, how to run away…last of all is how to hit for you…” he looked her over deliberately “how to hit is going to be last,” he picked up her arm and she watched it. Her shirt billowed in the wind, loose. Beneath it, her arm looked like a stick. Her brows drew together in a frown.
“I’m never going to be strong enough to fight?” She hoped she wasn’t reading too much into his words.
“You’re never going to be six foot tall and rippling with muscles,” he raised a brow.
Elyna nodded, well, she thought, that was true.
“So, your most important weapon will be whatever the Seven have gifted you with instead.”
