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 Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2012 12:20 pm
 The pup was doing well. He had a firm grasp on all of the basic skills required of any of the brothers, but if they left off there, he would never be anything more than a hunter at best. No. He could do better than that. If he lacked the potential, Dios would never have taken an interest in him. It was time for the next step. Soren was to learn how to be a true warrior. He would master the warrior's arts, or Dios would know why.
The great, blue warmaster glanced at the pup behind him, though he could only use the word loosely. Soren was growing. Someday, he might even be nearly as large as Dios himself.
He led them to their usual clearing. It was large enough to serve their purpose, and there was no point in trying a more complex battlefield like the forest or swamp until the pup could tell his paws from his fangs.
"Today, you learn how to fight."
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Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2012 12:54 pm
He didn't think rabbits were so big, anymore, not with the evident lengthening of his still-stubby legs or the stretching of his spine. He wasn't big, but could be. He was growing well under the careful eye of the warmaster, physically, while his mind had grown comfortable with the numbness - and even worked to use it to an advantage. Callous emptiness left no room to think about weaknesses.
By now, the path to the clearing was becoming a familiar walk. Soren could mark his growth in how his paws filled out, walking behind the warmaster and paying careful attention to the tracks he made. Large paws for a puppy, but still incredibly overshadowed by the width and weight that Arkadios could leave behind as he led the way. Arkadios spoke, and with an attentiveness close to that of a disciple, Soren listened.
Fighting.
Somewhat like hunting, he supposed, if the prey decided to strike back. But he knew that was hardly the kind of fighting his mentor had in mind. He looked up to the blue wolf in front of him and nodded silently, in a shallow way more intended for himself, and replied, "So I shall."
In their clearing, where the rocks had become familiar and the prey was growing increasingly jittery, Soren stood at attention. He wasn't quite sure how such a lesson would begin, whether it would be preceded by short-worded bits of knowledge or if he would be expected to launch straight into a scuffle - with his mentor, most likely, as it didn't seem there were any other wolves nearby. However it was meant to start, he was ready.
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Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2012 1:24 pm
"It will take more skill than hunting. Your enemy will not merely fight back. It will be stronger. It will be smarter. It will try to kill you, too."
There was really no helping it. There was no way to prepare for the act of battle other than the act itself. And someone like Soren? Well, the pup had some bad habits that they would need to break.
So, without warning, he charged at his trainee, darting to the left at the last minute and tackling him from the side. Dios would be gentle...relatively. He would not maim the pup. The point was not to kill him, but to train him to think on his paws.
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Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2012 1:43 pm
He understood the truth in the warmaster's words. He was vulnerable, no matter how much improvement he made. He was still young.
And still easily pummelled over.
He should have been expecting such an attack, but just couldn't keep his eyes from widening at the sheer suddenness in which Arkadios tossed him aside. Knocked off his paws and rolling away from the attack, Soren couldn't suppress the instincual thought that he would be seriously harmed if he didn't move; he scrambled, found his paws again, and rocked sideways, eyes on every twitch that Arkadios made and trying to reel in his flabbergasted mind. He couldn't panic, or anything even similar to that, but his heart was pounding in his chest as he did his best to simply dodge, not sure how he was supposed to strike back at a wolf so much larger than himself.
He would have to do something, though. Pick up the pace. He would aim for his mentor's paws.
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Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2012 1:56 pm
"Faster, pup," he said, his voice still calm and even despite their movements. "Your enemy will not wait for you to make a plan. While you are thinking, he will rip out your throat."
He moved closer, aiming to nudge body part in question. However, before he could follow through, the pup went for his paws, making him dance back a few steps before following through with his original intent.
"A good strategy, but you need to be faster. Don't think. Move."
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Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2012 3:29 pm
Don't think. Be faster. No plans, just actions, movements, doing. Taking too long means an open throat, all red with blood, and life forfeited to the enemy that would take advantage of his hesitations.
So he had done fine by halting his mentor's intentions briefly. That wasn't enough. He needed a blankness of mind, the sort that came with no thoughts, no words between his ears. Judgement would do him no good here, except to know where his enemy would be and what his enemy would do. What would Arkadios do next?
What would he do next?
It didn't matter. If he didn't do something, the training would be over. And he hadn't liked the touch against his neck, though he figured Arkadios wouldn't
He decided to let his paws take over the action, and let that back part of his brain memorize the warmaster's footwork - and attempt to mimic it, snapping the pup away from his mentor and twisting his ungainly paws in a sideways scramble. He ducked in, catching sight of a back paw and deciding that would be his target.
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2012 1:51 pm
The warmaster studied the pup even while he kept him hopping. Still too much thinking. Then, he noticed that the pup was quite focused on something. Ah. His hind paw.
“Your eyes give you away, boy,” he said. “Aiming for a rear limb is well enough, but to get there, you would have to get past my defenses. Can you do that? I might pick another target, if I were you.”
Not that he actually expected the pup to be able to land any hits on him. Not yet. But they would get there. For now, he just wanted him to learn the techniques. What to do. How to do it. They would work on his skills as time went on. Of course, if the pup did manage to strike him, that would mean that the boy really was quite remarkable…or Dios really was getting old and lazy.
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2012 7:46 pm
Soren's ears pinned back in the closest example of irritation he could possibly feel. How was he to know what he was attacking if he didn't look at it? His eyse were giving him away? He supposed they could do that, though, and looked to his master to see where his eyes were; closely following Soren's every move, appraising, picking out his faults and dragging them out where Soren could see them, too.
So it was obvious, then, that he would know nearly everything Soren meant to do.
Unless...
Soren's eyes began sweeping the entirety of the large blue wolf, no longer bothered on where he put his paws as he very abruptly changed course. Not the back paw, not when Arkadios could expect it and retaliate. He started one way, scurrying close to the ground, but just as quickly leapt back and danced a bit on auto-pilot toes, his mind pinning down the best place for attack even while his eyes continued to search.
He could never hope to score any sort of touch on his mentor, unless the older wolf wanted him to. But his cloak, where it hung at his side and danced as he moved, was a completely different matter. One bounce to the side and another toward Arkadios's back paw took him close enough, as he sharply leapt up at the wavering cloth.
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2012 8:17 pm
Was he still going for the rear paw, even though he knew the warmaster knew his target? Surely not. Soren had to be more intelligent than that, yes?
Regardless, that seemed to be where he was aiming as he hopped about like a little bunny rabbit. Perhaps he had taken the words as a challenge, rather than constructive criticism?
However, the pup disregarded the hind paw and managed to catch the edge of Dio's cloak before the warmaster pulled away, creating a new tear in the already ragged fabric.
Well, he thought wryly, perhaps you really are getting lazy, to be taken in by a trick like that. Should have seen that one coming. Perhaps you should take your own advice and pay attention. Just because he's a pup doesn't mean you can fall asleep.
"Better, pup," he said aloud. "Misdirection. Use your speed and size to your advantage. Right now, you are smaller than most. You should be more nimble, once you get your paws out from under you."
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2012 8:35 pm
He had succeeded. Even if it was a relatively small tear, he had still managed to taste cloak between his teeth. But he didn't feel any sort of accomplishment - after all, it was such a little thing for him to have done. Just better than what he had been doing, which meant he needed much more improvement before he was the best. Having made his mark, Soren did his best imitation of nimble and bounded away, already looking for a new target with a half concentration now designed to take advantage where it was offered.
Misdirection. He liked it, but didn't think it would work a second time. Speed and size. Arkadios was so big...
And his legs were long, too. Soren thought about the feel of his cloak, and knew what he wanted to do next. This time, his decision to barrel toward Arkadios's side was not one fueled by careful consideration. He simply saw an opening, and how easily he might slide right underneath, if Arkadios wasn't one for suddenly lurching forward. He ducked right down, meaning to arrive on the other side and see if he couldn't take a bite out of that patch of cloak, as well.
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2012 9:16 pm
Dios waited, wondering what the pup would do next. He did not have to wait long. Soon enough, the pup was racing straight for him. He was curious about what Soren intended, but an enemy on the battlefield would not stand around doing nothing while being attacked. So, he spun around to confront the pup.
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2012 9:33 pm
Soren didn't have the werewithal to stop, not at the sort of speed he was putting on with his gangly legs and oversized paws; he needed to make a split-second decision, and one that didn't involve knocking straight into Arkadios in an act of both clumsiness and indecision.
But then, maybe that's what he meant to do. Maybe he wanted to ram into Arkadios, despite the obviousness of it. To keep attacking from the sides felt a little silly, seeking out places that could be well-defended by an enemy who knew what he was doing.
So he didn't stop. He glanced to the side, almost wondering if he should abort mission and hop away like a frightened rabbit, but then was already committed to it. He wanted knees or ankles, anything that might make Arkadios fumble - even for a moment!
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2012 9:53 pm
Another trick? Or a reckless assault? At least the pup was beginning to make quicker decisions. Less analysis, more instinct. Perhaps some day, he would be skilled enough to combine the two good enough for it to be useful in battle. Or perhaps they would simply have to hone his instincts to deadly effect. Time would tell.
Well. Even if the pup wanted to change course, it would be too late, now. Reckless assault it was.
So, Dios ducked down to knock the pup aside with his head.
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2012 10:19 pm
Well, at least he hadn't been wrong in believing Arkadios knew exactly what he was up to. Soren didn't have any sort of prior experience that might help him with the predicament he now found himself in, nothing that might suggest even a tiny whisper of what to do as the larger wolf went in to sweep him right off his feet. He didn't know what to do.
But his body seemed to have at least a flicker of an idea.
Before he could complete his collision completely, and feel the swift knock of Arkadios's correctional assault, Soren felt the muscles in all four limbs begin to bunch - and then, when it seemed he would be knocked straight to the ground, he jumped. He jumped for all he was worth while his mentor was still low enough to the ground for it to count.
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Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2012 10:52 pm
Dios lie somewhere between pleasure at the pup's improvement, annoyance at missing, and the detached analysis of a warrior teaching his student. He wanted to push the pup. See how far he could go...without seriously injuring him, of course.
So, the warmaster twisted his body with more speed and dexterity than one would expect from so large a beast and reared up, hoping to knock the pup away before he landed wherever he was aiming to go.
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