Ways of the Spear [attn; Locke]

[Avyra]

Avyra

Avyra knew she was, hopelessly, light blindedly screwed. She did not want this to happen. She didn't need for this to happen. It just did, and she wanted to kick herself in the face because of it. She liked not one but two Drin'far'ji. Well, one happened to be a Ji now. And the sad thing was that she couldn't do anything about it. She wasn't allowed to. She couldn't ask anyone older for advice because she'd get herself in trouble for socializing too much, and it wasn't like she could just... forget about them both. Because she considered them both friends, and she couldn't just leave them just because her bloody mind decided that she felt something more for them. In fact, she was going to meet one of them now. Terric had offered to show her some fighting technique, and since she had never seen him actually fight, she figured it would be a great time to judge his skills, too. Besides, she wanted to work with the spear. Danos had told her that, since she had been injured during their final spar, she might be better suited for something other than unarmed combat. She believed him. And being too tiny to lift a sword, she figured a spear might work better for her. She knew she was out of uniform, wearing trousers and a shirt, but they didn't forbid female channelers from learning to fight and she figured that if anyone asked, they wouldn't give her too much trouble since she was, after all, being productive. Terric was waiting for her in the practice ring they had agreed on, and she made her way up to him, almost skipping. "Hello! Nice day, isn't it?" She smiled, running a hand through her long, wavy hair. "What will we start with?"

[Locke]

Terric

It was the morning free period and Terric waited in the training yard, crouched in the Aiel manner. Avyra seemed interested in learning how to fight, he figured he could at least teach her how to not break her neck if she was knocked over. So he waited. The tiny Chairenin was so curious about everything. There she was now, skipping across the Warder yards.

She bounced to a stop in front of him "Hello! Nice day, isn't it? What will we start with?"

He stood as she approached, “I see you, Avyra. You’re in a good mood.” Instead of her novice whites she wore a shirt that was probably intended for a small boy and a pair of trousers whose legs were rolled up at least four inches but still seemed to large. Her wavy hair was unbound and around her shoulders. All in all, she did not look like a formidable warrior. That wasn’t a problem. The best spear fighter he’d ever known was a gnarled old man. She didn’t stand like a warrior either. That was obvious to his trained eye. He would work on fixing that today. “It won’t be an issue today, but next time we train, tie back your hair. Right now it’s just going to get into your way. Also when you hair is shorter, people have to be much closer if they want to grab it,” he added, grabbing a hand full of his unruly, short red hair. “That’s not really a fighting lesson but a lesson about how to think like a warrior. That’s even more important that knowing how to use a weapon or throw a punch. Punching and kicking is for a later day. Right now I will teach you how to stand like a warrior. Then I will teach you how to fall like a warrior.”

[Avyra]

As she neared he stood, and Avyra was suddenly forced to crane her head to the giant that he was. She wrinkled her nose with some mock displeasure, obviously enjoying when she was the taller of the pair. “It won’t be an issue today, but next time we train, tie back your hair. Right now it’s just going to get into your way. Also when you hair is shorter, people have to be much closer if they want to grab it." As if to prove his point, he demonstrated with her own hair. “That’s not really a fighting lesson but a lesson about how to think like a warrior. That’s even more important that knowing how to use a weapon or throw a punch. Punching and kicking is for a later day. Right now I will teach you how to stand like a warrior. Then I will teach you how to fall like a warrior.” From her previous class with Danos, Avyra already knew the importance of proper foot posture. It had been how she managed to survive a while with a man that big, and she honestly couldn't believe she was about to do the same thing again. So, she fell into the posture he had taught her. It was sloppy, yes, but not incredibly off point. She stayed on her toes, facing Terric. She wanted to pounce and start fighting, but didn't. He hadn't told her to, yet. And she didn't know what he was about to teach her.

[Locke]

Terric

Terric looked her over with an apprising eye. Either somebody taught her the basics or she spent a lot of time watching warders train. At least he probably wouldn’t have to explain why stances are important. The stance itself was sloppy, but he could work with that.

“Drop your arms for now, we’re going to work on your foot placement first. Feet shoulder width apart, bend your knees. No, not that much. Yes a slight bend, keep yourself loose. Don’t lock up, that’s how to get hurt. Ok, take your left foot and point it forward, that right foot should be pointed forward but to the right. Not completely forward not completely to the right.” He walked around her inspecting her form. “You’re too far onto your toes, rock back slightly onto the balls of your feet. You want to be balanced and grounded but you don’t want to be to immobile.” He bent down and adjusted her foot placement. “Ok you’re doing good,” he walked in front of her. “Now, square your shoulders towards your opponent.” He walked around again inspecting and making minute adjustments, “Now, sit back slightly on that right leg. Shift your weight onto it. Not too much though.”

Teaching Avyra took him back, ten years ago training under the spear master Vishik. Before then, he had thought he knew how to fight with a spear. It wasn’t until that training that the spear truly became part of him.

“Now, for the fun part. Everything I’ve shown you can be used with unarmed fighting, knives, spears, honestly almost any weapon. A balanced stance is a must in any kind of fight. But because we’re not doing spear training today, I want you to take your left arm and extend it, loosely. Keep that hand open, remember don’t tense up. You want to be firm, but not tense.” He walked forward and bent the elbow slightly. “This arm establishes a bit of personal space. It’s to ward off attackers and establish a barrier. Sometimes you might carry a knife in that hand with the grip reversed, that or as I prefer, a buckler. Now your right hand, bring it up to guard your face. You see, if you were spear fighting, that hand would have a spear ready to thrust. It all ties together. Your weapons are part of you just like your fist.”

He made some final adjustments, and walked off a few paces. He squatted again and watched her. “Hold that stance until I say stop.” He began counting in his head.

[Avyra]

Was he pleased? She couldn't help but look a little triumphant. He began to correct her stance, mostly nit-picky things she hadn't thought about or forgotten. He walked around her, either telling her what to do or bending down to show her what he meant. Pretty soon, he had corrected all he could, and told her to hold the stance before squatting down in front of her. She huffed, doing what he asked. It was starting to hurt, all of it, and her legs were shaking, now. But she endured it, eventually closing her eyes. It was awkward, at this point. Avyra, after a minute, really couldn't handle the position. She felt like she was made of jelly, her legs and arms both painfully protesting the treatment they weren't used to. She needed something else to think about other than the pain. So, naturally, she looked to him. "Oh, hey, I'm taller than you now. I can actually see your face."

[Locke]

Terric

"Oh, hey, I'm taller than you now. I can actually see your face." Her smile was infectious.

He fought it back before snapping, “Rock forward, put your weight on the front leg now. No, don’t bend that far forward.” His thoughts drifted back to Vishik and the hours if not days of his life he had spent doing exactly this under his tutelage. The old man hadn’t been all rough edges. Yes he had been quick to criticize failure, but he didn’t want to destroy his warrior’s confidence completely, so he was always fair and even handed with his praise. “You’re learning this quickly, Avyra. You won’t mind holding this stance now will you.” He walked back to his spot and crouched watching her.

“As you become more proficient with these stances, you’ll feel them become part of your everyday life. When you see somebody who appears dangerous, when you hear a sudden loud noise. You will find yourself falling back on these fundamentals.”

[Avyra]

Ohhh was that a smile? Not a full smile, no, but there was something playing at his lips. She felt accomplished, sort of. It soon vanished when he snapped an order, not harshly, however, but unexpected for the tiny novice. She jumped, slightly, then corrected herself. However, the harshness did not last long. “You’re learning this quickly, Avyra. You won’t mind holding this stance now will you.” His voice was warmer, now, much closer to the Terric who had stuffed his face with sweet buns last night. “As you become more proficient with these stances, you’ll feel them become part of your everyday life. When you see somebody who appears dangerous, when you hear a sudden loud noise. You will find yourself falling back on these fundamentals.” She nodded, holding the pose again, her legs protesting, again. She wondered what holding the pose did but didn't ask; she didn't want to seem pushy. She wanted this to be right.

[Locke]

Terric

Good, she was willing to continue, even though her legs were aching. He had seen other Wetlanders in his classes complain over less. He started his count in his head but decided to end it after forty five seconds. She was obviously struggling but her will to go on spoke volumes.

“Stand up and stretch your muscles out,” Terric demonstrated a series of stretches holding each pose for a count of ten. “Keep up this way and you’ll be holding these stances for minutes at a time without flinching. Ok I’ll teach you one more stance and then I’ll teach you how to fall.”

He demonstrated the stance, squared off towards the opponent, feet shoulder width apart and parallel, knees bent, and his back straight. His arms were tucked in by his sides, elbows back, fists forward with the palms up, and forearms parallel to the ground. He sat back letting his weight drop into the stance. “Now, try to copy this stance, I’ll help you fix it. Don’t hesitate to ask if you have a question. Remember, there are no stupid questions. Just stupid people.” Terric didn’t let an ounce of mirth slip into his voice. Where would the fun be in that?

[Avyra]

After what felt like an eternity, he let Avyra stretch out her aching limbs. “Keep up this way and you’ll be holding these stances for minutes at a time without flinching. Ok I’ll teach you one more stance and then I’ll teach you how to fall.” She nodded, eager to learn how to do both. Especially falling. Someone her size was so much easier to knock over, and part of her problem before was not knowing how to take a fall, or even a hit, from someone who could lift her in one hand. He demonstrated the stance and she followed suit, copying him. Feet shoulder width apart, parallel, bent knees, arms to the side with elbows slightly bent and fists forward. It wasn't a hard stance, but she exaggerated the knee and elbow bend a bit much. Avyra fell into the stance and held it so he could walk around and inspect her work.

[Locke]

Terric

Terric walked around her, making minor adjustments. This time he would have her hold the stance until she wanted to quit. He’d call a halt before she actually did.

She seemed to be getting the hang of the stances, yes somebody had indeed taught her the basics. Best of all, she had a lot of heart. You can teach a warrior how to become stronger or faster quite easily. You just had to make them run, or lift stones. Heart was much harder to teach. In most cases, you either had it or you didn’t. Terric had always preferred fighting alongside warriors who could take a hit and jump up laughing. The kinds who would spend hours practicing even when their bodies wanted rest. These were the kinds of warriors who survived. Even if she never held a spear, that heart would serve her well as an Aes Sedai.

“You see, learning basic stances is like having tent pegs. You can build the biggest tent in the camp, but if you did not peg it to the ground, the wind will blow it away.” As he said this, he assumed one of the stances, he sidestepped into another stance, hands warding off an imaginary attack. He pivoted and side stepped again as if avoiding a second opponent. “I could teach you all manner of fancy kicks and flashy techniques,” he launched into a blurring combo of punches and kicks, “but without solid fundamentals that’s all as meaningless as your tent being blown into the desert.” To punctuate his lecture, he returned to a simple stance.