Training In All Forms [Gridania; Non-Canon]

[YesGood]

A red-skinned woman, clad in armor dulled only enough to prevent blinding anyone in direct light strode into the clearing with purpose. She already spotted the group collecting around one male, 'Jasper' she assumed from the stammering, red-faced Farridor.

 

Any hesitation Siobhain might have felt for appearing tardy to this (for her) impromptu training session was quashed beneath her stern mask. She wasn't a resident of Gridania and the forest-city was still somewhat new to her-- finding her way here had been something of a miracle in itself, thank Llymlaen or Nophica, whichever was responsible.

 

"Eh's not mah fault it broke...s'not the weapon Ah chose, either...eh's jus'...ah..." The young man was tripping over his words so profoundly she almost felt sympathetic. Or disappointed. No... definitely sympathetic.

 

At the risk of putting her oddly shaped nose into business where it was not wanted, she spoke up in her usual, authoritative tone.

 

"I've a spare blade, lad, if you have need of it." Even while the Roegadyn spoke, she began to unfasten the buckle on her belt, raising the scabbard of the blade towards the stranger. The weapon it held was a fine one, possibly too dangerous for sparring and crafted light for her hand. She'd been considering dual-bladed practice so both blades she bore were light, one-handed pieces-- but her interest rested more deeply in learning how to handle her thrown weapons.

[Moltove]

"I've a spare blade, lad, if you have need of it." Even while the Roegadyn spoke, she began to unfasten the buckle on her belt, raising the scabbard of the blade towards the stranger. The weapon it held was a fine one, possibly too dangerous for sparring and crafted light for her hand. She'd been considering dual-bladed practice so both blades she bore were light, one-handed pieces-- but her interest rested more deeply in learning how to handle her thrown weapons.

Posted by Teveriel - Yesterday 11:27 PM

 

 

Looking at the bundle of cloth, wood and the dull blade in his hands, Farridor gave a thoughtful gaze to the mess, listening to Ken's words. "Nah, Ah've heard stories of the Garleens and their gunblades an such", he shook his head, looking up to the Miqo'te, "I don' think tha's me, to be frank. No honor, yeh? Ahn, Ahm not so sure of lettin' my enemies so close if they out-arm me..."

 

Considering most had already arrived and a few were sitting down, Farridor heard the footsteps of the Roegadyn approaching when all should have been still. Turning, however caused the Hyur's face to turn as red as the dye he clumsily attempted to use for his leather armor. When she spoke, and offered her blade to him, his face flushed further, anymore so and he'd have a nosebleed.

 

"Ah...Ahh...", he stammered, taken aback but quickly try to rectify this by lowering his voice some, and puffing his chest out, "Ahm greatful, Lady Knight, ahn Ahm honored to use such ah beautiful, well-made blade!"

 

Taking the sheathed blade, he poured over the details quite excruciatingly, even on the scabbard itself. He could tell the quality was much better in every facet than his father's shop could come close to replicating, though in Gridania only the commoners placed orders with their shop. The bigger and more militaristic orders went to the Blacksmithing guild directly.

[Deirdre]

With the whole group of them around andJapser finally making his entrance, the Highlander that seemed to be intimidating so many relaxed. He hated approaching people himself, especially these kinds of people in this kind of situation. Though, he supposed it was better than a few other situations he could be in, in Ul'dah.

 

Frowning deeply because of histhoughts, he nodded stiffly to Jasper before glancing at the new meat. Roegaydn, tough, sure of herself. That right there was the one he wanted to fight with. He came here to avoid the duties of hisfamily life, perhaps this time around it would not be so drab.

 

Clearing his thick throat he introducedhimself as the others were, not wanting to be so terribly rude. “Kohrae.”

[Paradyme]

Jasper simply looked around at the group and the newcomer, talking about weapons that they may or may not have brought. "It's quite alright, we won't be doing weapon training till later - And we give you the weapons for that. It's to regulate damage caused to our personal, ah..." The word was the only thing that came to mind at the time, "To our, uh, punchbag. My apologies for calling you something as dire as that, Kohrae." He looked down a moment, rubbing the back of his neck lightly. And then he looked back to the group. "If you'll step this way, we'll get you registered before the first class." He smiled warmly before stepping into the make-shift dojo of sorts.

 

Paradyme had looked around at the group and smiled at each of the new additions. It was becoming quite a large group! And it would seem that the taller, well built highlander was also a 'test subject' in this wonderful exercise that was perceived by Jasper. At least it was all planned out. He bowed his head lightly before speaking his head, "Ah, I'm Paradyme. It's a pleasure to meet you all." He answered quietly and meekly. He certainly wasn't a brutish or brash. That much was certain. He then turned to see Jasper disappear inside.

 

A blink, and he quickly ran up the steps and headed inside to register. He didn't want to be the last one in, certainly not. He was eager to learn! He wanted to know about all kinds of battle and how best to respond in different situations. He approached the desk with a clipboard on it, signed his name and headed towards the room that the training was to be held.

 

"Please, take a seat. We'll begin shortly." Jasper spoke as each person signed their name at the desk, giving a slight nod to Koh as he stepped through.

[Aysun]

The girl had no weapon at all. Her hands hung empty at her sides hidden in her sleeves, and there was nothing strapped to her back or waist. She watched the others anxiously as they spoke amongst themselves, quite sure she would be asked to leave at this point for not coming prepared.

 

Needless to say when Jasper said weapons weren't needed, she was as relieved as the boy who'd broken his lance earlier was at Sio's offer of a blade. She gave said boy a smile that looked somewhat odd, perhaps before hurrying after the one who'd called himself Paradyme as he headed into the building. She flung a hand up to steady her hat as she looked around. She signed herself in, a scribble of a name "Risu" before following Para over to where he chose to sit. He was the first one she'd met, so it was only natural for her to follow him.

[YesGood]

"Ah...Ahh...", he stammered, taken aback but quickly try to rectify this by lowering his voice some, and puffing his chest out, "Ahm greatful, Lady Knight, ahn Ahm honored to use such ah beautiful, well-made blade!"

 

A brief smile flickered across the Roegadyn's face, wholly softening her expression while she regarded the appreciative man. Jasper's voice dissipated the gentleness in the next moment, however, returning her more stern demeanor.

 

"It's quite alright, we won't be doing weapon training till later - And we give you the weapons for that. It's to regulate damage caused to our personal, ah..." The word was the only thing that came to mind at the time, "To our, uh, punchbag. My apologies for calling you something as dire as that, Kohrae."

 

Siobhain did not allow herself to reflect any exasperation or disapproval for this choice, only inhaling deeply through her nostrils and swallowing any resulting sigh she might have been feeling. Training was serious business, and the cheery fellow simply did not match what she was accustomed to. The idea of using 'regulated weapons' likely wooden training implements was beyond her-- something she had never been given the option of and bore the scars to prove it. All the same, his program, his rules.

 

Looking back over the others, she addressed Farridor again, briskly. "Keep the sword. I'll make another if and when the occasion calls for it."

 

"If you'll step this way, we'll get you registered before the first class." He smiled warmly before stepping into the make-shift dojo of sorts.

 

Without waiting to see if her new 'acquaintance' would accept her offer, much less walk with her towards the indicated building, she began at her lengthy stride again. Another shy lad gave his name, 'Paradyme', and she bobbed her head in greeting, purely out of force of habit.

Kohrae, Jasper, Farridor, Paradyme, she mentally noted. There was a skittering little body covered in robes and an obscuring hat that reached the clipboard before her. 'Risu'. She signed in with a symbol rather than a name at first, of a small flame within a diamond. After a moment, she scrawled two illegible words, even by her standards, and followed the others in to the training room.

 

"Please, take a seat. We'll begin shortly." Oh. Right. Sitting. She approached a seat not too close to the other occupants of the room and gave it a passing inspection before she took it awkwardly. She was used to standing-- this was already proving to be a new experience.

[TheLastCandle]

Ken followed the rest of the group in silence. He signed his name with a flourish, giving Farridor a clap on the shoulder before making his way to a seat. He slouched comfortably and let out an expansive yawn, folding his arms behind his head. 

 

The Miqo'te gnawed on the end of his straw as he turned an encompassing glance around the slowly filling training room. He soon took to staring into space and reached back to scratch his posterior. While the rest of the registrants continued to trickle into the room, his eyes glazed over with unmistakable boredom.

 

Ugh, he thought. I hope we get started with the action soon.

[Moltove]

Farridor quickly fastened the new blade to his side. It was fairly light, in consideration with the person it was crafted for. For himself, it was on the heavy side, more than likely to be used with two hands until he grows stronger, if not a little bigger in general. Regardless, Farridor was awestruck, in a way, of the offer. When told he could keep it, he tried to refuse, though it was only a less than a few seconds before he was told to go inside and register. He double checked to ensure the blade was safe, despite not needing it, and picked up the scrap of his former weapon.

 

Following the group, he stayed between Siobhain and Ken, and let them sign first. Receiving his shoulder pat from Ken, he smiled and signed his own name. It certainly wasn't pretty, as manuscript certainly was never a big aspect in his education, but tried to make big, bold letters to compromise. Satisfied with his work, he joined the rest of the group and sat down, glancing at Sio. He couldn't help but wonder if she was some special knight-- or even a Paladin! The stories she may have would be absolutely divine to listen to! Perhaps today wouldn't be so bad after all?

[Paradyme]

The way everyone filed in so happily and easily warmed Jasper's heart! They were all so eager, but so controlled. At least there was a smaller group, rather than a bigger one. He couldn't deal with larger groups. He once had to teach a class of thirty to forty Miqo'tes. He fainted multiple times under the pressure of his job. Poor guy. He did eventually get to teach the class the various lessons, but it took him longer than expected.

 

He stood at the back of a rather spacious hall, waiting for them to file in after signing their name. "Please, please! Come and sit. We are almost ready to begin with your first class!" He announced, looking at each of the faces that had appeared. Most of them were rather young. Others, not so much. It was also nice to see the youngsters of this land wanting to step up and fend off the evils that haunt the land.

 

Paradyme filtered into the room and looked to Jasper for a moment, then back at the group that was a part of this new class. He would remain silent until the class was underway and he was allowed to speak. It was only polite, after all! He crossed his legs and smoothed out his robes to let them appear more refined than they were. They were hand-me-downs from the place he used to live. They worked, though. A little ragged, but looked alright to the eye.

 

And thus the wait for everyone to sit, was on.

[YesGood]

Separated by a fair distance from the rest of the group, her attention was focused for a silent stretch of time on Jasper. Waiting. This, again, was something new to her. Waiting on people to show up to a scheduled training session, rather than simply berating them partway through a lecture for being late. Everyone she'd bothered to take notes of outside were already here, the Roegadyn had believed, and she cast her amber gaze around to recount them.

 

While doing, her searching gaze drifted over Farridor, lingering a moment. He seemed an excitable young man, perhaps a bit clumsy... Which was innocent enough until you put even a blunt weapon in his hands. Turning around in her seat, Siobhain mulled over some concern that this thought arose before pushing herself to her feet. With no explanation or other ceremony, she moved to a seat within arm's reach of the young man, and sat herself down a second time. Afterwards, the paladin sat back, arms crossing over her chest while she returned to glowering at Jasper, more darkly now, as if she might have been angry about something.

[Paradyme]

 

(It would seem I didn't read the posts well enough. Feh. I got home from work and was tired, okay? )

 

 

Once everyone had taken their seats, Jasper smiled to each one in the group. "So! As you all know, we're here to do some training for battle purposes. To protect Gridania, or otherwise. I know all of you are here for different sections, however it would be nice to get your input on each specific part of the training rather than stick to the parts that you would rather know." He began, rubbing his hands together nervously as he looked to Koh for a moment.

 

"It's nice to see you've all gotten yourselves acquainted with each other. Knowing names of your fellow pupils allows you to bond with them! That is a good start. Now. We will start by seeing who's got skill in this discipline..." He answered, smiling as he was handed the clipboard with each of the names on it. Examining the list he smiled, "Okay, let's start with... Ken. Up you get. You get to fight Koh one-on-one first." He smiled, his gaze moving around the group to see who stood up.

 

Paradyme, in the meanwhile watched as Jasper gave a bit more of an intro to the day and then looked to the seat next to him. It would seem that the young girl was still with him. He was shocked to see this, but he smiled to her nonetheless. He liked his personal bubble, but it would be nice to have a friend through all of this. A buddy, if you will. And they both seemed to be here for the black mage training, anyway.

 

Once Jasper had asked for Ken to stand, eyes moved through the group to pick him out, it wouldn't be too hard. There were only a few there. But... To fight Kohrae... One-on-one? That was a bit far no?

 

"Oh, don't hurt them Koh, just... Try to encourage them to think about how they attack." Jasper chimed in as he stepped off to the side. This wasn't his expertise. He wasn't built for physical aggression. He was certainly more of a ranger. His bow and arrow lingering in the corner somewhere.

[TheLastCandle]

Ken rose to his feet and stretched his arms out in front of him, cracking his knuckles.  "Welp, this should be a good enough workout." The Miqo'te shifted his straw to the other side of his mouth as he approached the front of the room.

 

"Oh, don't hurt them Koh, just... Try to encourage them to think about how they attack," Jasper chimed in as he stepped off to the side.  

 

"No need to make the conjurers work too hard today," Ken replied with a half-grin. He drew his wooden training sword and raised it in a duelist's stance, his waving tail betraying his excitement. "But don't go too easy on me, eh?"

[Moltove]

Farridor watched in what seemed to bean excited anticipation as the room fell silent, awaiting the one named Jasper to take the lead. Sio had moved closer to the young hyur and nearly gave him a nosebleed in excitement he could do little to contain his excitement. Instinctively he grabbed the sword at his side, as if to hold the reminder of her casual act of sincere kindness and looked her up and down, taking in any dent or scratch in her armor...and perhaps anywhere skin showed, as well. The red skin was exotic to him, and knowing that female Roegadyns were far and inbetween, especially around Gridania, she was just an interesting spectacle wrapped in a mysterious story, and Farridor wanted to know everything.

 

"Okay, let's start with... Ken. Up you get. You get to fight Koh one-on-one first."

 

Excellent, thought Farridor. We'll get to see what this training's all about. Practicing on dummies is one thing, but feeling the shake and rattle of a struck blade in your hand is something else entirely...wait...Koh...does he mean...

 

Farridor snapped his attention forward. This couldn't end well, could it? Even if Ken was right about the calcium, it may just take two hacks to loose a limb, rather than one...At least the behemoth wasn't paired with himself, at least.

[Deirdre]

 

(Sorry I fell behind on this guys,seriously jab me if I forget, had a lot happen this weekend )

 

 

He had been motionless for the most part while Jasper did what he did best, deal with the rabble. While he did not much enjoy being ordered around, do this and do that, it was forgivable here. He could let himself unwind, be the source of release instead of creating the tension.

 

The Highlander's expression was not one of amusement as he looked over the younger man. Ken, he had been called, but a name did not mean much when you were a body on a field. A Miqo'te lad, the race of which he had little contact with. They bled just the same.

 

Ken's words and grin could not break the stone expression that sat on the square jaw of Kohrae, even as he unfolded his arms and took a few steps forward. Comfortable with the distance between them the Highlander balanced his footing and bent his knees, raising only his fists as weapons.

He needed no sword for this fight.

“Let's see if you can use that.”

[TheLastCandle]

The Miqo'te flattened his ears with a quiet sigh, dropping his stance. "Tch. Don't go giving me advantages. It's no fun like that," he muttered, smoothly slipping the sword beneath his belt. He wasn't much of a pugilist, he admitted silently to himself, but he liked to test his limits.

 

Ken mimicked the larger man's stance and gave him a measuring glance over.  He was certainly no match for him in raw strength; those ham-sized fists seemed akin to sledgehammers to the relatively small-framed Miqo'te. He winced involuntarily, then forced it back into his customary half-grin.

 

He would have to hope speed and agility would prevail.

[Deirdre]

There was no need for him to put awaythe sword, he could have handled that, the scars littering his forearms was a testament to many such occasions. But, when the man got in to stance and stood there looking him over, the boredom won over.

 

Kohrae was a hulking mass of muscle,which made him slower by nature, but he wasn't in all that of a hurry to reach the young trainee either.

His footsteps were solid, boots hittingthe ground with a thud, the distance closed in only three wide steps from the tall man. If the sheer weight of his barrelling forward was not enough, that right 'ham-sized' fist now screamed towards his little Miqo'te head.

 

Fun was going to be the last thing onhis mind once Kohrae was finished.

[YesGood]

Siobhain watched with a chilly expression, her eyelids heavy but seemingly unwilling to drop into even the slightest blink. The Highlander was serious, which she could appreciate, and he didn't seem overly cocky. The same could not be said for the slender Miqo'te. Her jaw set hard so that her teeth ground within the confines of her lips.

 

She'd heard Kohrae invite the young man to use his weapon-- or at least see if he could. In response he'd dropped it and taken up his fists. Such a thing simply would not stand in real combat. "Foolish." The Roegadyn stated, but quietly, not wanting to distract either of the combatants with derogatory comments. Her attention flitted to Jasper, where he stood off to the side.

 

After while of consideration, she raised her large, gauntlet-covered hand in silence like a child in academy. If the trainer's attention didn't leave the fight, she'd be stuck in this position for quite some time, but she was willing to wait to ask a question, relatively unrelated to the two fighting at the moment. Her attention, still, drifted back every few moments to the Highlander, taking mental note of his methods.

[Aysun]

Risu watched Para quite intently until he decided to acknowledge her presence with an awkward smile. One she returned before finally shifting her attention to the pairing as they readied themselves. The Miqo'te put his wooden sword away--why would he do that!?

 

This.. was beginning to seem like a bad idea. While she was not entirely sure what she should have expected coming to this little event, facing a Highlander in hand to hand combat training was not high on her list of things she wished to do, or could do, for that matter.

 

She leaned forwards in her chair, peering past Sio to the other 'young' person in the crowd, Farridor. She did not hide this attempt to see if he too was looking nervous now. But then she looked up to the red-skinned woman, curious if she'd heard her correctly through the slightly muffling hat she wore. If that woman thought it was foolish, then it most certainly was. She watched as said woman raised her armored hand, before looking back to the pair before them.

[Moltove]

Farridor continued to watch. He was certainly interested, though at the same time he was nervous as well. Knowing that his greatest 'threat' would be Siobhaine, he felt at some ease as she seemed more practical, more likely to teach than to severely beat or penetrate a sword (or fist) through his limbs. So there was a feeling of thankfulness, but at the same time he could not help but to worry slightly for his new acquaintance. Surely there will be a lot of pain in this match-- it was simple logic: They were mismatched. But is this what it's like out there in the real world? Regardless of what weapons that you have, is it possible that you could end up being so outclassed and alone? The thought was daunting. Frightening. This fight was a bad idea, and Farridor's presence was unneeded. The young Hyur debated whether or not to leave at this point, when finally the match started.

 

---

"Foolish." The Roegadyn stated, but quietly, not wanting to distract either of the combatants with derogatory comments. Her attention flitted to Jasper, where he stood off to the side.

 

Farridor nodded and stared up at the rather exotic woman next to him, Sio. If she thought this was foolish, then he was not alone in his assumptions. There has to be some other variable to this. He looked around, wondering if both of their reactions are just and he was met with compliance with everyone in the group, aside from Jasper's. He caught a glimpse of the young Hyur girl looking in his direction, but he immediately looked forward again. When he thought she wouldn't noticed, he looked back. She was cute, of course. It almost made him want to be paired with her, almost as if he could teach her a thing or two. He was out of luck with the magic, but perhaps she could teach him, as well. Farridor blushed at the thought and quickly looked forward once more. 'What am I thinking?', he considered to himself, 'I couldn't teach a training dummy to hold still, much less teach a peer anything worthwhile in this fighting ring...

 

"Ah dunno 'bout this. How could he not get hurt?" Farri muttered

[TheLastCandle]

The Miqo'te had no time to think - Koh was deceptively quick for his size, but Ken was confident that he still retained the advantage in speed. He dropped into a forward roll and, in a single motion, sprang to his feet and aimed a booted foot at the back of the Highlander's knee joint. 

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry for the late reply. Work and such.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Paradyme]

Paradyme looked over at the two that were about to spar and simply watched. His eyes were focused and intent on learning what it was to become a pugilist. It wasn't his field technically, but he'd learn it regardless. Any form of training is still something new to learn right? He didn't knock it until he tried it, even if having to go up against that big... Tall... Rather muscular highlander was going to ha- He didn't want to do this. He was terrified.

 

Meanwhile, Jasper watched the lesson go on with glee! At least until his attention was turned to see the Roeg with her hand in the air. He smiled to her, "What's up miss?" He asked, awaiting the question.

[Deirdre]

The little bugger was quick, that was certain... but he had faced quick opponents before, and more often than not it was just a delay to their demise. His roll has made his intentions obvious, and his momentum allowed him to take a few more steps forward, well out of reach.

 

Pivoting on his toes and stopping with his heels, Kohrae paused to look the young man over again, ignoring their little crowd of students. Of course, not before the thought of tossing him in to the observers crossed his mind.

 

Grinning, the hulking man stances again, "Best you reconsider that sword of yours."

[YesGood]

The Roegadyn glanced down to her smaller 'companion', overhearing his muttering but assuming his question was rhetorical. The younger of the two combatants was swift-- but she wasn't entirely certain that agility would win out over what, she perceived from Kohrae to be, seasoned skill in combat.

 

He smiled to her, "What's up miss?" He asked, awaiting the question. 

 

"Was the unarmed discipline what you scheduled for this morning?" Siobhain's expression was a dark and (easily mistaken as) menacing as Jasper's was cordial. Her tone, however, held no malice, only genuine curiosity. She didn't think anyone in a dangerous battle-situation was going to be forced to resort to hand versus hand situations, so much as unarmed versus armed. If it was, the Paladin wasn't sure she would be able to bring herself to participate even in sparring-- not against someone who was weaponless with -her- fists.