20th Ymiden, 718
Rey slashed forward with Windsong, getting a feel for the weapon in the light of the day. All of her slashes were clumsy at best, and dangerous at worst. Fortunately, nobody was within reach of the girl, as she'd picked a time in the courtyard where nobody seemed to be around. Soon, her teacher would be arriving, but until then she could do nothing but wait. So, the girl had decided to get some use out of the weapon, try and come to grips with it. She wasn't completely inept, her experience with blades somewhat helped, but holding a weapon so much longer than a dagger left the girl all kinds of confused. What confused her even more was the difference she saw in spears, how some men ran in with one hand while others thrust with both. Was there a time she was supposed to use each hand?
In her confusion, the girl had missed her teacher approaching, until the man cleared his throat with some volume. Rey jumped, glancing back and pointing her spear out of instinct. When she noticed who it was she lowered her spear, her face going a crimson red with embarrassment. The man smirked, holding a spear of his own, before entering a combat stance.
"Well, you wanna swing first, or shall I?" he chuckled after a few trills of pause, Rey's blush still there. The girl paused for a moment, unsure. Then, her eyes fell to his blade. It was different to hers, curved like a sword at the end instead of pointed like hers. Before she could react, the man swung his spear with a twirl, stopping it beside the girls neck, the metal lightly touching her throat. As her blue eyes glanced to the man, he smiled a little wider.
"Now you swing, and I block" he ordered, a small smile spreading on Rey's face. Fine, if this was how it was going to be. With a clumsy movement, the girl went to swing, but before her spear went anywhere near his neck, the man blocked. Almost immediately after, his spear slid out from under hers and swung beside her neck, stopping just in time again. Without hesitation he moved his spear away. "Again."
Trying to catch him off guard, Rey'na went for another swing, but was countered as expected. This time, however, her spear followed with his and blocked hit attack, albeit barely. Without waiting, she swung again, and almost caught the man off guard. However, he managed to block just in time. As the girl readied her spear above her head to block his slash, the soldiers spear swung the other way, the blunt of it being used to take the girl to the floor by swiping out her feet. With a heavy impact, the girl landed, pain surging through her.
"George, by the way. I'm one of the spear masters of the Elements" the man said, lowering his spear before offering the girl a hand up. Rey hesitantly took it, but this time no trick fell upon her. "Your first lesson was how to swing and block. Let your second lesson be this - don't fall in to a false security. No man will wait for a technique you know how to counter, so you must learn to counter them all."
"Easy to say for a spear master of the elements" the girl mocked, though some genuine annoyance was in her tone. Tough love wasn't always the best way to learn, she thought. Though, saying that, how would she know until she tried? Letting go of her frustration, the girl sighed. "Rey'na Nardovino, I'm aspiring to join the mages, as well as work with a spear. It's a pleasure."
Nardovino? Like that Faith lass, the healer?" he asked, almost in awe. Rey nodded, though have him no more information than that. She wasn't about to leech off her sisters fame by claiming that they were close relatives. It was bad enough that the last name was recognized, she hadn't done anything worthy of praise after all.
"Well, the pleasure is all mine, Rey'na. I look forward to seeing what you bring to the elements. I must ask, thought. Where did you get such a beautiful spear?" he pondered, his eyes in awe at the sight of Windsong. Rey offered it to the man to try, George immediately taking it. Rey'na then explained. "A Smith in the town, very efficient at his trade. Cost me a near fortune, though. But worth it all the same, if it helps me do my job."
"And what job would that be, if you don't mind my asking?" the man questioned, taking a swing with the spear, the air whistling as the spear tore through it, singing its song. Rey raised an eyebrow. It would be a standard answer to say the Elements, so she assumed the man wanted to know more than that.
"Well, my job is to protect people. Fight for the innocent, fight against the guilty. That's pretty much it" she explained, avoiding any detail. It was none of this mans business as to why she wanted to follow this path, or what caused her to end up here. Fortunately, he had no intention of asking. Instead, he had one last swing of the spear, before handing it back to the girl with a friendly smile.
"Well, that is a fine weapon, and a fine reason to join up with us. You'll make a perfect addition to the team, and the help will be appreciated" George nodded, before turning his back to the girl and picking up his spear and resting it on a weapon rack. "Me and a few others are going out to the tavern, if you'd like to join? Just for a short while."
Hesitantly, the girl looked back to the man. Making new friends was an idea she liked, but it felt like she would be throwing herself in the deep end a little with this one, so the girl shook her head - yet smiled politely. "I'd like to keep training for now, I want to ensure I'm ready" she smiled. Yet the man seemed more concerned than anything else.
"Just keep yourself safe, lass. Last thing we need is someone new exhausting themselves. Alright?" he frowned, as if reminiscing. Rey sighed and walked towards the man, keeping her spear by her side. "If we return to my home and drop off my spear, then I would be honored to join you all. You need not worry about me working too hard, though. I know my limits."
Bringing a smile to the mans face, Rey's vow would be kept. She would go with them all and, perhaps, leave with more friends than she arrived with. Even if none of the others liked her, she'd taken a liking to George, more so than she did to most on a first meeting. Perhaps it was his concern for her, or that he was working for the Elements like her, or even just the idea that she had made a friend on the first day. Either way, though, she felt some respect for the man.
Eventually, the two made their way back to the womans house, both entering. "I'm sorry that it's somewhat cramped" she confessed, though the house was in good shape nonetheless. Rey made sure to keep it clean to pass the time, when she wasn't working. Eventually she had grown bored of just sitting at home and doing nothing, waiting for Pier and Pre to give her contracts.
"It's no worry at all, your house is fine" he chuckled, Rey going to the corner of the living room and resting down Windsong. She had no stand for the creation, so kept it neatly in the corner. It wouldn't get damaged, she thought, so what was the harm in it - and what would the point be in wasting money on a stand when she had a fully efficient corner as it was? She then turned to the man and smiled.
"I don't mean to fuss, but you don't mind if I sort myself out somewhat before we go? You're more than welcome to go on ahead without me, but I would rather get clean and put on some fresh clothes if I'm to be meeting new people" she admitted. Before, the girl had always worn her beauty with pride, a habit that she found herself getting back in to. Back in Rynmere, the girl would have worn a dress so beautiful that everyone walking past could have mistaken her for nobility. By the Immortals, she missed those days - and that dress.
"Of course, though if you'd rather I go I'm happy to. If not, I can wait here?" he offered. Rey smiled and glanced to the man, blushing a little at the idea of a man staying in her house. Yet he was so enticing, she couldn't bring herself to send him away. "You're more than welcome to wait, make yourself at home, I won't be long" she offered, before going in to the other room and preparing to bathe.
Both then spent the night together, going out shortly after before the man walked her home to safety, and the two agreeing to train again soon. Then, with a wide smile on each face, they parted ways.
Rey slashed forward with Windsong, getting a feel for the weapon in the light of the day. All of her slashes were clumsy at best, and dangerous at worst. Fortunately, nobody was within reach of the girl, as she'd picked a time in the courtyard where nobody seemed to be around. Soon, her teacher would be arriving, but until then she could do nothing but wait. So, the girl had decided to get some use out of the weapon, try and come to grips with it. She wasn't completely inept, her experience with blades somewhat helped, but holding a weapon so much longer than a dagger left the girl all kinds of confused. What confused her even more was the difference she saw in spears, how some men ran in with one hand while others thrust with both. Was there a time she was supposed to use each hand?
In her confusion, the girl had missed her teacher approaching, until the man cleared his throat with some volume. Rey jumped, glancing back and pointing her spear out of instinct. When she noticed who it was she lowered her spear, her face going a crimson red with embarrassment. The man smirked, holding a spear of his own, before entering a combat stance.
"Well, you wanna swing first, or shall I?" he chuckled after a few trills of pause, Rey's blush still there. The girl paused for a moment, unsure. Then, her eyes fell to his blade. It was different to hers, curved like a sword at the end instead of pointed like hers. Before she could react, the man swung his spear with a twirl, stopping it beside the girls neck, the metal lightly touching her throat. As her blue eyes glanced to the man, he smiled a little wider.
"Now you swing, and I block" he ordered, a small smile spreading on Rey's face. Fine, if this was how it was going to be. With a clumsy movement, the girl went to swing, but before her spear went anywhere near his neck, the man blocked. Almost immediately after, his spear slid out from under hers and swung beside her neck, stopping just in time again. Without hesitation he moved his spear away. "Again."
Trying to catch him off guard, Rey'na went for another swing, but was countered as expected. This time, however, her spear followed with his and blocked hit attack, albeit barely. Without waiting, she swung again, and almost caught the man off guard. However, he managed to block just in time. As the girl readied her spear above her head to block his slash, the soldiers spear swung the other way, the blunt of it being used to take the girl to the floor by swiping out her feet. With a heavy impact, the girl landed, pain surging through her.
"George, by the way. I'm one of the spear masters of the Elements" the man said, lowering his spear before offering the girl a hand up. Rey hesitantly took it, but this time no trick fell upon her. "Your first lesson was how to swing and block. Let your second lesson be this - don't fall in to a false security. No man will wait for a technique you know how to counter, so you must learn to counter them all."
"Easy to say for a spear master of the elements" the girl mocked, though some genuine annoyance was in her tone. Tough love wasn't always the best way to learn, she thought. Though, saying that, how would she know until she tried? Letting go of her frustration, the girl sighed. "Rey'na Nardovino, I'm aspiring to join the mages, as well as work with a spear. It's a pleasure."
Nardovino? Like that Faith lass, the healer?" he asked, almost in awe. Rey nodded, though have him no more information than that. She wasn't about to leech off her sisters fame by claiming that they were close relatives. It was bad enough that the last name was recognized, she hadn't done anything worthy of praise after all.
"Well, the pleasure is all mine, Rey'na. I look forward to seeing what you bring to the elements. I must ask, thought. Where did you get such a beautiful spear?" he pondered, his eyes in awe at the sight of Windsong. Rey offered it to the man to try, George immediately taking it. Rey'na then explained. "A Smith in the town, very efficient at his trade. Cost me a near fortune, though. But worth it all the same, if it helps me do my job."
"And what job would that be, if you don't mind my asking?" the man questioned, taking a swing with the spear, the air whistling as the spear tore through it, singing its song. Rey raised an eyebrow. It would be a standard answer to say the Elements, so she assumed the man wanted to know more than that.
"Well, my job is to protect people. Fight for the innocent, fight against the guilty. That's pretty much it" she explained, avoiding any detail. It was none of this mans business as to why she wanted to follow this path, or what caused her to end up here. Fortunately, he had no intention of asking. Instead, he had one last swing of the spear, before handing it back to the girl with a friendly smile.
"Well, that is a fine weapon, and a fine reason to join up with us. You'll make a perfect addition to the team, and the help will be appreciated" George nodded, before turning his back to the girl and picking up his spear and resting it on a weapon rack. "Me and a few others are going out to the tavern, if you'd like to join? Just for a short while."
Hesitantly, the girl looked back to the man. Making new friends was an idea she liked, but it felt like she would be throwing herself in the deep end a little with this one, so the girl shook her head - yet smiled politely. "I'd like to keep training for now, I want to ensure I'm ready" she smiled. Yet the man seemed more concerned than anything else.
"Just keep yourself safe, lass. Last thing we need is someone new exhausting themselves. Alright?" he frowned, as if reminiscing. Rey sighed and walked towards the man, keeping her spear by her side. "If we return to my home and drop off my spear, then I would be honored to join you all. You need not worry about me working too hard, though. I know my limits."
Bringing a smile to the mans face, Rey's vow would be kept. She would go with them all and, perhaps, leave with more friends than she arrived with. Even if none of the others liked her, she'd taken a liking to George, more so than she did to most on a first meeting. Perhaps it was his concern for her, or that he was working for the Elements like her, or even just the idea that she had made a friend on the first day. Either way, though, she felt some respect for the man.
Eventually, the two made their way back to the womans house, both entering. "I'm sorry that it's somewhat cramped" she confessed, though the house was in good shape nonetheless. Rey made sure to keep it clean to pass the time, when she wasn't working. Eventually she had grown bored of just sitting at home and doing nothing, waiting for Pier and Pre to give her contracts.
"It's no worry at all, your house is fine" he chuckled, Rey going to the corner of the living room and resting down Windsong. She had no stand for the creation, so kept it neatly in the corner. It wouldn't get damaged, she thought, so what was the harm in it - and what would the point be in wasting money on a stand when she had a fully efficient corner as it was? She then turned to the man and smiled.
"I don't mean to fuss, but you don't mind if I sort myself out somewhat before we go? You're more than welcome to go on ahead without me, but I would rather get clean and put on some fresh clothes if I'm to be meeting new people" she admitted. Before, the girl had always worn her beauty with pride, a habit that she found herself getting back in to. Back in Rynmere, the girl would have worn a dress so beautiful that everyone walking past could have mistaken her for nobility. By the Immortals, she missed those days - and that dress.
"Of course, though if you'd rather I go I'm happy to. If not, I can wait here?" he offered. Rey smiled and glanced to the man, blushing a little at the idea of a man staying in her house. Yet he was so enticing, she couldn't bring herself to send him away. "You're more than welcome to wait, make yourself at home, I won't be long" she offered, before going in to the other room and preparing to bathe.
Both then spent the night together, going out shortly after before the man walked her home to safety, and the two agreeing to train again soon. Then, with a wide smile on each face, they parted ways.
