Practice For The Body and Mind I 
Ash 20th, 120th Year, A.o.S.
Within the open space of the grandeur that was the Proving Grounds, everything was almost a near dead silence what with the stands completely barren. Here was where many warriors of honor had fought time and time again, and it was also here within the massive arena that combatants were allowed to train. Warriors from all over liked to refine their skills here, often relying on partners or even training dummies that the caretakers have set out within the arena. Rickter and Telion were of course a duo in their own right, with the pair dressed only lightly for the occasion. Telion donned her white blouse over the pair of brown leather trousers she wore, with her wooden oak staff often switched between her hands with practiced ease.
Rickter on the other hand simply wore his white vest and beige trousers, with the iron shield he'd often kept at home clasped on his left arm. Together they were practicing not just refining their combat prowess, but building a sense of partnership that could allow them to fight more efficiently. From what the wolf knew his companion was a capable fighter at a distance, able to utilize the power of the elements as well as these magical shields she sometimes referred to. While that made her a valuable asset overall, it also made her vulnerable to other aggressors, because she was practically a glass cannon of the two. Rickter however was far more resilient than her, but only practiced in the world of weaponry at large.
So where she excelled in range he did in close quarters, which only made them a formidable team so far. "Haaaah!" The bard called out as she came to Rickter, twisting about as soon as her foot made a stop on the hard ground, before spinning to slam the surface of his shield with the right end of her staff. Barely even a budge on his behalf, but the wolf wasn't playing the aggressor in this round, simply gauging her natural strength so that he could think of ways she can flourish. "Heeyah!" Another blow as she brought the right end of the staff over from above, slapping it down across the top of his shield as she thought to move, only before pulling back after a moment's hesitation.
"Don't do that," Rickter remarked quickly with a soft point at where she stepped, "anytime you hesitate during the middle of a combo, you generate an opening that allows the enemy to push back. The last thing you want is for an opponent to spot an opportunity to strike back." Telion looked at him warily but there was weariness in her eyes too, even strands of her hair started to darken from the sweat she'd started to work up. Still, the bard nodded and readied herself, holding the staff mindfully as both her hands were situated closer to the center. She had a very firm grip for sure, but it was certainly her speed and power that needed work. When Rickter raised his shield up once more he looked to her, eyes narrowed with intense focus, before nodding for her to resume her patterns like before.
Telion darted forward with a jab first, finding the resistance in his shield impossible to overcome. She nearly staggered as she pulled the staff away, lunging at him with a lop from the left side as her staff banged against the surface once more. While the rattles that shook his shield stung only a little, Rickter knew they would be nothing compared to the normal blows he would suffer. With Reaving it was hard enough to deal with the backlash of pain after a battle, therefore the idea of using a shield as a Pact Weapon rather scared him a bit honestly. He didn't want to jump too far ahead of himself, as he remembered the lessons his mentor taught him long ago. A Reaver inexperienced with a Pact Weapon is a guaranteed invitation for death, something that Rickter didn't plan to allow to happen any time soon.
Still, Telion did not relent in her attacks, as the third was brought over from her right side, with a bit more force than her previous two strikes. Good, she's building power in her blows. He noted as the arm within his shield shook only once, the corners of his lips nearly turned at the observation of her marginal improvement. The bard assailed him once more with another blow, rotating to her left before bringing the staff around to smack him with another hook from the right. The shield rang from the bash of her staff a moment later, as the hit once again caused Rickter to slightly yield within his own shield arm. "That's good! Very good!" He credited as he lowered his shield arm again, slightly amused to see the blonde breathing a little harder.
Her chest heaved greatly as Telion kept her breathing under control, regulating its flow with steady and drawn-out cycles on both the intake and the out. Nevertheless, she looked at him a bit pleased, easing up with the staff held in one hand as she planted the other end down. "I never realized how much energy you put into this." To that the wolf gave a low groan, as it served as nothing more but an amused chuckle on his behalf. Telion likely understood now the levity of close combat, and how critical thinking always paved the way to certain victory. "How'd I do?"
"You're getting there." He remarked softly as he lowered his shield arm, thinking of the ways that he could use it for both offense and defense. "You'll need caution though when wailing on a guarded opponent, if you can't break through their defense in one try; don't even bother pushing on them from the front." He instructed with his shield arm elevated once again, his eyes still focused intently on Telion as he continued to speak. "You're strongest with your magic, so it's likely you actually can break through, if not at least cause your opponent to budge."
"What happens if they only budge?" Telion inquired with a tilt of her head.
"Then you either hit them where they're open, or you make sure you break it with a second spell. Not all spells are liable to work though, obviously, water won't do a whole lot against heavy armor, and wind can be a tricky thing to rely on if they're weighty." To that Telion nodded in agreement, seeing the value in understanding the enemy's strengths and weaknesses also. It was good since Rickter wanted her to be able to keep her safe, even if that meant she needed to protect herself, in the event he could not. "Bear in mind, however," He started with a slow march towards her now, the shield held up as though he intended to plow into her, "enemies will push on you too if they think they can win."
Telion's eyebrows rose and for a moment she smiled, before her eyebrows furrowed and she looked to him determined. She knew what this was then, a drill to see how she'd compete against him during the instruction. "Are you saying you can beat me?" To that Rickter groaned another noise, this time resembling more of a scoff as he slightly grinned.
"I haven't drawn my sword yet have I?" He challenged as he continued to march on her, the bard retreating a couple of steps back, before taking a deep breath and lunging in for an attack from her left. Using her hands to alter the angle of the staff, the bottom rose up from below to smack the rim of his shield from below, yet failed to cause him to even relent as Rickter continued his gradual march against her. The bard realized the threat of her challenge then, and then retreated a few steps further back, before gauging him with another determined look in her eyes. That's right, fight on! He wanted to declare outright, yet remained ever quiet as he watched to see how she'd react.
The bard tucked the wooden pole behind her in one hand, determined to find a means of breaking through, before charging at him once more with an over-the-head swing from her left. Telion's weapon slammed hard against the rim once again, still failing to budge Rickter's arm as she went in for another attack. "Hwa!" The staff slammed into the side of his shield from the left, causing it to recoil but hardly even stir when she did. "Dammit!" She stumbled back realizing her error, the heel of her foot catching one of the cobblestones on the floor, which in turn sent her teetering backward in surprise.
Rickter on the other hand simply wore his white vest and beige trousers, with the iron shield he'd often kept at home clasped on his left arm. Together they were practicing not just refining their combat prowess, but building a sense of partnership that could allow them to fight more efficiently. From what the wolf knew his companion was a capable fighter at a distance, able to utilize the power of the elements as well as these magical shields she sometimes referred to. While that made her a valuable asset overall, it also made her vulnerable to other aggressors, because she was practically a glass cannon of the two. Rickter however was far more resilient than her, but only practiced in the world of weaponry at large.
So where she excelled in range he did in close quarters, which only made them a formidable team so far. "Haaaah!" The bard called out as she came to Rickter, twisting about as soon as her foot made a stop on the hard ground, before spinning to slam the surface of his shield with the right end of her staff. Barely even a budge on his behalf, but the wolf wasn't playing the aggressor in this round, simply gauging her natural strength so that he could think of ways she can flourish. "Heeyah!" Another blow as she brought the right end of the staff over from above, slapping it down across the top of his shield as she thought to move, only before pulling back after a moment's hesitation.
"Don't do that," Rickter remarked quickly with a soft point at where she stepped, "anytime you hesitate during the middle of a combo, you generate an opening that allows the enemy to push back. The last thing you want is for an opponent to spot an opportunity to strike back." Telion looked at him warily but there was weariness in her eyes too, even strands of her hair started to darken from the sweat she'd started to work up. Still, the bard nodded and readied herself, holding the staff mindfully as both her hands were situated closer to the center. She had a very firm grip for sure, but it was certainly her speed and power that needed work. When Rickter raised his shield up once more he looked to her, eyes narrowed with intense focus, before nodding for her to resume her patterns like before.
Telion darted forward with a jab first, finding the resistance in his shield impossible to overcome. She nearly staggered as she pulled the staff away, lunging at him with a lop from the left side as her staff banged against the surface once more. While the rattles that shook his shield stung only a little, Rickter knew they would be nothing compared to the normal blows he would suffer. With Reaving it was hard enough to deal with the backlash of pain after a battle, therefore the idea of using a shield as a Pact Weapon rather scared him a bit honestly. He didn't want to jump too far ahead of himself, as he remembered the lessons his mentor taught him long ago. A Reaver inexperienced with a Pact Weapon is a guaranteed invitation for death, something that Rickter didn't plan to allow to happen any time soon.
Still, Telion did not relent in her attacks, as the third was brought over from her right side, with a bit more force than her previous two strikes. Good, she's building power in her blows. He noted as the arm within his shield shook only once, the corners of his lips nearly turned at the observation of her marginal improvement. The bard assailed him once more with another blow, rotating to her left before bringing the staff around to smack him with another hook from the right. The shield rang from the bash of her staff a moment later, as the hit once again caused Rickter to slightly yield within his own shield arm. "That's good! Very good!" He credited as he lowered his shield arm again, slightly amused to see the blonde breathing a little harder.
Her chest heaved greatly as Telion kept her breathing under control, regulating its flow with steady and drawn-out cycles on both the intake and the out. Nevertheless, she looked at him a bit pleased, easing up with the staff held in one hand as she planted the other end down. "I never realized how much energy you put into this." To that the wolf gave a low groan, as it served as nothing more but an amused chuckle on his behalf. Telion likely understood now the levity of close combat, and how critical thinking always paved the way to certain victory. "How'd I do?"
"You're getting there." He remarked softly as he lowered his shield arm, thinking of the ways that he could use it for both offense and defense. "You'll need caution though when wailing on a guarded opponent, if you can't break through their defense in one try; don't even bother pushing on them from the front." He instructed with his shield arm elevated once again, his eyes still focused intently on Telion as he continued to speak. "You're strongest with your magic, so it's likely you actually can break through, if not at least cause your opponent to budge."
"What happens if they only budge?" Telion inquired with a tilt of her head.
"Then you either hit them where they're open, or you make sure you break it with a second spell. Not all spells are liable to work though, obviously, water won't do a whole lot against heavy armor, and wind can be a tricky thing to rely on if they're weighty." To that Telion nodded in agreement, seeing the value in understanding the enemy's strengths and weaknesses also. It was good since Rickter wanted her to be able to keep her safe, even if that meant she needed to protect herself, in the event he could not. "Bear in mind, however," He started with a slow march towards her now, the shield held up as though he intended to plow into her, "enemies will push on you too if they think they can win."
Telion's eyebrows rose and for a moment she smiled, before her eyebrows furrowed and she looked to him determined. She knew what this was then, a drill to see how she'd compete against him during the instruction. "Are you saying you can beat me?" To that Rickter groaned another noise, this time resembling more of a scoff as he slightly grinned.
"I haven't drawn my sword yet have I?" He challenged as he continued to march on her, the bard retreating a couple of steps back, before taking a deep breath and lunging in for an attack from her left. Using her hands to alter the angle of the staff, the bottom rose up from below to smack the rim of his shield from below, yet failed to cause him to even relent as Rickter continued his gradual march against her. The bard realized the threat of her challenge then, and then retreated a few steps further back, before gauging him with another determined look in her eyes. That's right, fight on! He wanted to declare outright, yet remained ever quiet as he watched to see how she'd react.
The bard tucked the wooden pole behind her in one hand, determined to find a means of breaking through, before charging at him once more with an over-the-head swing from her left. Telion's weapon slammed hard against the rim once again, still failing to budge Rickter's arm as she went in for another attack. "Hwa!" The staff slammed into the side of his shield from the left, causing it to recoil but hardly even stir when she did. "Dammit!" She stumbled back realizing her error, the heel of her foot catching one of the cobblestones on the floor, which in turn sent her teetering backward in surprise.
"Every side attacks you when you don't pick sides."
