Welcome to Gaia! ::

"No, no, legs a little further apart, arms higher," Throngar corrected her. "That's it. Now, I'll hit at various parts of your body. I'll go slowly at first, but then get faster. I want you to block me. Let's begin!" He suddenly chopped up at her head with his right hand.

"Hrm... you're sweating after that?" Throngar asked Jinx dubiously. "I may be trying to push you, but your stamina should be better than that... alright! Next thing then! We're going for a run!"

Throngar gave her a cuff around the ear, sending Alcharius flying with a squawk. "That attitude's why you're not fit enough in the first place!" he reprimanded her sharply. "Now come on!" A cunning light lit up in his eyes. "Tell you what," he smirked at her. "I know a short-cut through the mountains to the nearest town. If we run there and back, we should be able to get back here by nightfall. Even allowing for a... 'rest' there, shall we say?"

"What, so you think you don't need stamina?" Throngar snorted derisively in response. "What if you have to escape guards by going cross-country? Elude them in an extended chase through the streets, or a labyrinth of corridors, or a forest? What if we ever have to fight the Blecks in a protracted encounter? Where will your aversion to running for long periods of time get you then, eh?" He gave her a sharp poke in her exposed midriff. "Don't think you can get through life in any profession without a bit of pain! You have to do things you don't like at all from time to time; that's an unbending rule of nature. Don't try and run from it - you wouldn't get very far anyway with your current physique!"

"Good!" Throngar barked, pleased. "This way then!" With that, he set off at a jog in a westerly direction. His pace wasn't actually that fast - but then, they were practising stamina here, not speed.

"Oh joy... this promises to be fun..." sighed Alcharius to Jinx.

"How's it going for the two of you?" Throngar asked Jinx, clearly amused. "He getting on your nerves yet?"

"So hah!" boasted Alcharius.

Throngar just gave a snort and rolled his eyes, still looking amused by the pair, and pressed on in silence.

"Nonsense!" Throngar replied, his breathing long but still quite controlled. "We're not even into the mountains yet - we can rest once we're up there. Come on, we can make it in another half hour if we pick up the pace a bit!" And so pick it up he did.