Frosty Flamboyance
Throughout the empty Proving Grounds the stands were seen being swept by custodians, for the light snowfall that pestered Kalzasi had blanketed many of rows at the front of each section. Not many warriors save for Sky Guard or guild mercenaries were found throughout the grounds themselves, so in actuality it gave a lingering duo ample room for some exercises. Dressed in their armors so that they could be accustomed to fighting in them, within the weather no less, Rickter and Telion were one of the few pairs among the small number of groups there that trained diligently.
"Hah!!" Telion's voice cried out as she assailed the big wolf, her staff swung in a downward arc and she slammed it hard into the shield on Rickter's arm. Though he wore chainmail he still felt enough force to actually retract his arm some, even backing off each time he felt her powered strikes smack at another part of his iron shield. Admittedly, the wolf could tell that the bard had grown a lot, as she was not only hitting him harder but moving just a little faster as well. Still, after her flurry of attacks, Telion backed off, brushing the surface of her palms along the leather of her thighs as she paced her breathing. "Still wanna go at it?"
The wolf simply grinned in return, his shield arm lowered a bit as he relaxed into a straighter stance, as his form practically towered over the blonde lady before him. "Absolutely. Hit me with everything you got!" In encouraging her Rickter lowered his shield arm once more, projecting it forward so that he could see above the rim, and prepare for Telion's next barrage of attacks whenever she felt ready. The bard took in a deep amount of air to breathe slower for a moment, and then with her iron staff in both hands, she charged at him once more. Striking from the right she battered the surface of his shield once more, using the recoil of his push away to carry the staff over, and bring it around from the right after a full circle rotation.
Bam. The force of her attack rattled Rickter's shield arm then, and he realized just how strong her attacks had gotten in turn. Nevertheless, the wolf didn't back down from where he stood, simply shifted his right leg a step or two to adjust for each attack. The wolf knew he could still shrug off Telion's blows as he was, and yet, it wouldn't be long before he found even her a challenge. Telion had been pretty dedicated to the physical training that Rickter provided for her, while in turn, he'd slowly been grasping more and more magic in their spare time together. With the Argent Hand tourney on the horizon now, however, it was high time that Rickter upped his own game; and showed that he was ready to conquer his enemies on the battlefield.
Telion moved in once again, her staff swung from the left as she clobbered his shield, following up with another hard smack from the right, before the bard finished her combo with another blow from below. The rim of his shield vibrated as Rickter's arm shifted, thrown out of its place from the underhanded force of her blow. Noticing the sudden retreat Telion realized the opening she'd finally generated, and moved in with the staff spinning between her hands, so that she might completely break through his impenetrable defense. This was good for her, and bad for him too but in a good way, as she was learning how to overcome obstacles with just might alone.
Yet while it showed just where Rickter's opening could be found, it also meant he needed to be able to recover in time as well. So when he noticed that extra swing from his companion, the wolf's eyes widened before zoning in on Telion and her form. Were she his actual opponent, he'd taken to squash her and beat her down using the very shield in his left hand. He'd have found a way to counteract her, or even flat-out subdue her for being so close to harming him. Yet this was just practice. And while he could've thought up several ways to react, the immediate response to her urgent strike led him to raise his right arm up in turn. Light flashed as teal-colored aether swirled past his wrist, coalescing into the metallic form of the bastard sword he'd use in actual combat.
Realizing what had happened Telion's movements slowed but barely, for the reaction had occurred in the thick of the moment, allowing their weapons to clash with one another the moment his sword materialized. Rickter felt a jolt within his own core then, as though something spurred within, giving him pause as he processed what exactly occurred at that moment. He'd felt a twinge or jolt in his wrist. A moment where he'd seen Telion stare hard in pure awe, as she'd been surprised by the fact he'd blocked her blow with his weapon. What was strange was he'd felt his weapon nudge him, so when the wolf realized it had happened with his actual Pact weapon? Well, you can imagine how confused he was.
Telion's minor retreat was only a few steps back, with the staff still held but in a carrying manner now, as the bard looked to him with astonishment and curiosity also. "Awe! You actually drew your sword!" She pointed out almost melodically as she remembered their first training session together, and the remark he'd made towards her before their accidental turn moments after. "I didn't... hurt you did I?" The answer was a firm no but even then... Rickter didn't seem to fully grasp the inquiry either. Rather he looked at his own blade then, his eyes thoughtful as he observed it in turn. Telion looked rather confused then, lowering her staff entirely as she watched him in turn. "Ricky?"
There was a moment... and then it happened. He didn't quite understand it, but looking at the iron blade in his hand, nothing out of the ordinary seemed to occur. "Must've been my imagination..." The bard tilted her head then, resulting in the wolf looking at her finally, before lowering his weapon back down with a shrug gestured at her. "Don't worry about it. It takes more than a single hit to hurt me."
"I know!" Telion remarked with a light giggle, tucking the staff behind her back when she did. "But even so, you still feel pain when you dismiss your weapon right?"
"Sort of," the wolf started as he eased the grip on his hilt some, "when a Reaver draws out their Pact weapon, whatever it is, their very soul embodies that weapon. In turn, every blow we intercept or make ourselves has a bit of a backlash. It's not normally threatening, but the pain is something you have to overcome." As he elaborated on this the wolf released his weapon entirely, allowing the bastard sword to dissolve into particles of aether, as they swirled from its tip toward the surface of his palm. Within a blink of an eye, the weapon appeared to drop, dissolve, and disappear within the very air before Telion. "Which reminds me... I was hoping to request something from you."
"Huh?" Telion tilted her head at him then, showing that he'd piqued her interest with that last statement.
"I've grown accustomed to the practice of Negation, and I know I've a long way to go to master it. But I was hoping to ask, if you wouldn't mind sharing that rune of Elementalism with me as well." Telion quickly straightened out as she realized what he wanted now, her expression turning into a considerable smirk when she stared at him as well.
"You want to learn and practice the power of the elements?"
"I've still got no ranged form of weaponry yet, and while I plan to someday, I'd defer to making sure that I'm well practiced with it firsthand. That said I'm still short of power when it comes to distance, which is why I'm asking if you'd be willing to help in that regard." Rickter explained with a reasonable tone, likely sounding more logical or perhaps even analytical at best.
"Hah, bold of you to ask!" The bard answered in turn, raising a finger up to point it beneath her chin as she considered the request. "I might be inclined... if you can show me how good you've gotten with Negation!" She challenged briskly with a few more steps taken back, leading Rickter be the one who tilted his head this time. "Simply put, show me how far you've gotten with your Shieldcrafting! Impress me and I just may reward you!" She offered in turn, grinning widely at the proposal she gave him.
Rickter honestly didn't think he'd be any good since she was far better practiced, but if all she wanted was to see his prowess with Shieldcrafting, then all he had to do was generate a shield that could negate her magic. Right? How hard could that be?
Frost 1st, 120th Year, A.o.S.
"Hah!!" Telion's voice cried out as she assailed the big wolf, her staff swung in a downward arc and she slammed it hard into the shield on Rickter's arm. Though he wore chainmail he still felt enough force to actually retract his arm some, even backing off each time he felt her powered strikes smack at another part of his iron shield. Admittedly, the wolf could tell that the bard had grown a lot, as she was not only hitting him harder but moving just a little faster as well. Still, after her flurry of attacks, Telion backed off, brushing the surface of her palms along the leather of her thighs as she paced her breathing. "Still wanna go at it?"
The wolf simply grinned in return, his shield arm lowered a bit as he relaxed into a straighter stance, as his form practically towered over the blonde lady before him. "Absolutely. Hit me with everything you got!" In encouraging her Rickter lowered his shield arm once more, projecting it forward so that he could see above the rim, and prepare for Telion's next barrage of attacks whenever she felt ready. The bard took in a deep amount of air to breathe slower for a moment, and then with her iron staff in both hands, she charged at him once more. Striking from the right she battered the surface of his shield once more, using the recoil of his push away to carry the staff over, and bring it around from the right after a full circle rotation.
Bam. The force of her attack rattled Rickter's shield arm then, and he realized just how strong her attacks had gotten in turn. Nevertheless, the wolf didn't back down from where he stood, simply shifted his right leg a step or two to adjust for each attack. The wolf knew he could still shrug off Telion's blows as he was, and yet, it wouldn't be long before he found even her a challenge. Telion had been pretty dedicated to the physical training that Rickter provided for her, while in turn, he'd slowly been grasping more and more magic in their spare time together. With the Argent Hand tourney on the horizon now, however, it was high time that Rickter upped his own game; and showed that he was ready to conquer his enemies on the battlefield.
Telion moved in once again, her staff swung from the left as she clobbered his shield, following up with another hard smack from the right, before the bard finished her combo with another blow from below. The rim of his shield vibrated as Rickter's arm shifted, thrown out of its place from the underhanded force of her blow. Noticing the sudden retreat Telion realized the opening she'd finally generated, and moved in with the staff spinning between her hands, so that she might completely break through his impenetrable defense. This was good for her, and bad for him too but in a good way, as she was learning how to overcome obstacles with just might alone.
Yet while it showed just where Rickter's opening could be found, it also meant he needed to be able to recover in time as well. So when he noticed that extra swing from his companion, the wolf's eyes widened before zoning in on Telion and her form. Were she his actual opponent, he'd taken to squash her and beat her down using the very shield in his left hand. He'd have found a way to counteract her, or even flat-out subdue her for being so close to harming him. Yet this was just practice. And while he could've thought up several ways to react, the immediate response to her urgent strike led him to raise his right arm up in turn. Light flashed as teal-colored aether swirled past his wrist, coalescing into the metallic form of the bastard sword he'd use in actual combat.
Realizing what had happened Telion's movements slowed but barely, for the reaction had occurred in the thick of the moment, allowing their weapons to clash with one another the moment his sword materialized. Rickter felt a jolt within his own core then, as though something spurred within, giving him pause as he processed what exactly occurred at that moment. He'd felt a twinge or jolt in his wrist. A moment where he'd seen Telion stare hard in pure awe, as she'd been surprised by the fact he'd blocked her blow with his weapon. What was strange was he'd felt his weapon nudge him, so when the wolf realized it had happened with his actual Pact weapon? Well, you can imagine how confused he was.
Telion's minor retreat was only a few steps back, with the staff still held but in a carrying manner now, as the bard looked to him with astonishment and curiosity also. "Awe! You actually drew your sword!" She pointed out almost melodically as she remembered their first training session together, and the remark he'd made towards her before their accidental turn moments after. "I didn't... hurt you did I?" The answer was a firm no but even then... Rickter didn't seem to fully grasp the inquiry either. Rather he looked at his own blade then, his eyes thoughtful as he observed it in turn. Telion looked rather confused then, lowering her staff entirely as she watched him in turn. "Ricky?"
There was a moment... and then it happened. He didn't quite understand it, but looking at the iron blade in his hand, nothing out of the ordinary seemed to occur. "Must've been my imagination..." The bard tilted her head then, resulting in the wolf looking at her finally, before lowering his weapon back down with a shrug gestured at her. "Don't worry about it. It takes more than a single hit to hurt me."
"I know!" Telion remarked with a light giggle, tucking the staff behind her back when she did. "But even so, you still feel pain when you dismiss your weapon right?"
"Sort of," the wolf started as he eased the grip on his hilt some, "when a Reaver draws out their Pact weapon, whatever it is, their very soul embodies that weapon. In turn, every blow we intercept or make ourselves has a bit of a backlash. It's not normally threatening, but the pain is something you have to overcome." As he elaborated on this the wolf released his weapon entirely, allowing the bastard sword to dissolve into particles of aether, as they swirled from its tip toward the surface of his palm. Within a blink of an eye, the weapon appeared to drop, dissolve, and disappear within the very air before Telion. "Which reminds me... I was hoping to request something from you."
"Huh?" Telion tilted her head at him then, showing that he'd piqued her interest with that last statement.
"I've grown accustomed to the practice of Negation, and I know I've a long way to go to master it. But I was hoping to ask, if you wouldn't mind sharing that rune of Elementalism with me as well." Telion quickly straightened out as she realized what he wanted now, her expression turning into a considerable smirk when she stared at him as well.
"You want to learn and practice the power of the elements?"
"I've still got no ranged form of weaponry yet, and while I plan to someday, I'd defer to making sure that I'm well practiced with it firsthand. That said I'm still short of power when it comes to distance, which is why I'm asking if you'd be willing to help in that regard." Rickter explained with a reasonable tone, likely sounding more logical or perhaps even analytical at best.
"Hah, bold of you to ask!" The bard answered in turn, raising a finger up to point it beneath her chin as she considered the request. "I might be inclined... if you can show me how good you've gotten with Negation!" She challenged briskly with a few more steps taken back, leading Rickter be the one who tilted his head this time. "Simply put, show me how far you've gotten with your Shieldcrafting! Impress me and I just may reward you!" She offered in turn, grinning widely at the proposal she gave him.
Rickter honestly didn't think he'd be any good since she was far better practiced, but if all she wanted was to see his prowess with Shieldcrafting, then all he had to do was generate a shield that could negate her magic. Right? How hard could that be?
"Every side attacks you when you don't pick sides."
