• Solo • From the beginning. Again.

[Sintih]

2nd of Saun, 720th Arc
Late morning
Viden, Academy, Fitness Centre

They were a curious sight to see, the three of them. Even in a place like Viden. One incredibly weak looking human sitting in a wheel chair, pushed by an Ellune double the size of the man in the chair and a young Eidisi woman next to them, leading their little procession by way of a pointing finger, even though everyone knew exactly where they were going. Both the Ellune and the Eidisi were dressed in the recognizable white uniform that infirmary personnel wore while the human in the chair was bundled up in triple layers of clothes and furs to keep him warm. While most of Viden was trying to adjust to the current heat wave that was happening, the human sat shivering in his chair, staring blankly ahead of him. The trio crossed the campus, following the paths carved through the snow as they headed from the infirmary to the fitness centre.

The Eidisi pushed upon the the doors leading into the two storied building that contained the centre and waited for the Ellune to push the human inside before she closed them again. Once the doors closed, Sintih found the temperature to quickly grow to an acceptable level within his triple layer of fabrics. He didn't enjoy the treatment and the double nurse guard but even he could admit that having to walk from the infirmary to here on his own would have been impossible. Initially, Doctor Tholian had hoped to get Sintih back on his feet with some quick exercises but had decided that Sin's physical state would require proper care, under the guidance of an expert. Sin had agreed to it, trusting the Eidisi doctor as it hadn't been the first time the man had brought Sintih back to a healthy state. Or at least a healthy enough state considering his patient. So here they were, about to get started on another batch of therapy to get him to walk properly again.

"Reed!" The Eidisi nurse approached the reception area and the man sitting behind it. "How are you this trial? I'm here wi-..." The rest of her words faded out as Sin focused elsewhere. The building was filled with the near constant sounds of exercise. From boots on stone floors to sudden loud shouts, all of it with a constant undertone of breathing in various stages of exhaustion. It would take a while to get through all the paperwork and he got restless sitting here waiting for it to get done. Grabbing the armrests of the chair, Sin pushed himself up to his feet, which took an embarrassing amount of huffing and puffing on his part. He immediately felt a large hand on his back, providing support. It was annoying but Tholian had been clear with his instructions. So Sin let the hand support him until he got his cane in place and could put some weight on it instead of his own two feet before waving away the support from the Ellune.

[Sintih]

Sintih made his way deeper into the building, carefully. It took time, more than he cared to admit, although it hadn't been as bad as the first time around. At least he could walk on his own from the start this time. In his human form, Sin looked both distinguished and odd at the same time. The cane provided him a bit of a richer look while the triple layer of fabric stood out against anything anyone else was wearing in this building. But he'd learned long ago to ignore the stares of others and when he let himself sink within himself, he ignored even their very presence around him. But he didn't go that far. He focused. Walking at a speed barely fit for an old man, let alone a thirty arc old human. Tick, the cane first, to lean on, then a few steps, then tick again.

He made his way out of the reception area and into the hallway leading to the various other areas the centre had to offer. Here, on the ground floor, smaller rooms could be used for limited groups or private lessons. Other parts of the building had space for large groups or different activities. There was enough space somewhere for someone to run around inside of the building. If nothing else, the Videnese had perfected the art of making buildings for things that the rest of Idalos considered to be outside activities. As he walked, he could feel the Ellune hover behind him, constantly within arm's reach of him, well large Ellune arms' reach.

Passing one of the many training rooms, loud impact noises drew his attention to a training session being conducted inside. A small group of five people were lining up to strike at a training dummy with their hands. Sin stopped to observe. As he observed he could tell four of the people were beginners. At first it was their general stance and approach to the dummy that told him that but after observing for a bit or two, he could see that one of them struck much calmer, more precise than the rest of them. Probably the instructor. He remained standing in the door opening, observing the exercise as each one in turn approached the dummy and struck it. The instructor stepped up and struck with an open palm, hitting it square in the middle of the chest, causing the dummy to slide back a little and wobble in place before settling. Then the other struck. They were a mess. One of them managed to shift it back a little when he basically charged the dummy with an outstretched hand, which got him pulled aside by the instructor for some pointers. His father's face popped up and he recalled a memory from when he'd been learning some basic unarmed attacks, after having bugged his father about it for several ten-trials.

Sin smiled at that, briefly, before it faded. The exercise continued but now it expanded. The instructor stepped up to the dummy and quickly kicked the legs before striking with the palm, knocking it over. As the instructor stepped back, Sin realized that it wasn't a kick but rather that she had used one leg to block the dummy from sliding backwards, hooking her foot in behind it. So, tripping was also part of the course. He wasn't sure how much time passed as he observed but the students had trouble hooking. Two of them managed to kick but then lost their balance striking the dummy in the chest, another one succeeded in the hooking and striking but went down after the dummy and landed on top of it. The last one kicked and missed. Or rather, kicked and hit a tougher part of the dummy and jumped back, hopping on one leg for a trill before rubbing his future battle scar trying not to show the pain he felt. Admirable, especially when Sintih studied him a little in his pain and realized that he, and the other students were only children. Perhaps fourteen to sixteen years of age.

[Sintih]

The hurt one noticed him watching, making eye contact with him from halfway across the training room. Sin thought he could see a flash of something across the child's face, shame or anger or something. Or perhaps he simply thought that's what it was because that's how he remembered feeling every time he'd made eye contact with Doran after having failed yet another task or exercise. He shifted slightly, moving his weight from one foot to the other and repositioning his cane so leaned on it at a slightly different angle. The hooking and striking continued, although it mostly devolved into a hooking and pushing as the students seemed physically incapable of bringing forth the strength necessary to topple their foe properly.

After a short round of everyone giving it another try, the instructor shifted back to simply striking, this time stepping into the dummy, close, and striking the chin of the wooden target with her open palm, lifting it up off the ground. One of the students seemed impressed by this as he let out a gasp. Which drew the instructor's attention and he received some more pointers. Apparently gasping was against the rules. One by one the students tried to imitate, striking upwards to the dummy's chin in an attempt to lift it off the ground. Not exactly the right goal here but Sin assumed the instructor knew what they were doing. Instead of focusing on the right moves and how they worked, Sin focused more on trying to observe the move the instructor showed and how it differed from the moves that the students did. While the instructor had more of a strike-impact and then the dummy bounced off of it, the students seemed to more strike and then continued pushing.

A large hand suddenly settled on his shoulder and drew him away from his exercise. It surprised him and had him spinning around on his heels. Old reflexes. Reflexes he couldn't currently sustain. He could feel the cane shift as his knees buckled out from under him. Sin could feel his asterism spike with light as he fell. Before he could hit the stone floor, however, large white hands hooked under his armpits and stopped him from falling any further. The Eidisi nurse had also reacted, but slower, and her hands were reaching for him, although they would have never made it in time if the Ellune hadn't gotten to him. It felt quite embarrassing, being supported by this Ellune like a baby being held when it made its first steps. And considering the size of the hands and the person holding him, he might as well have been.

The Eidisi nurse pulled the wheelchair closer while the Ellune pulled him back up on his feet, supporting him until Sin had his own balance and strength back. Still a little shaky on his legs, Sin grabbed the armrest of the chair and sat down, the large Ellune hands hovering near him just in case but leaving him to do the job of sitting down all by himself. In that moment, Sin understood exactly what the young student had felt when he'd realized Sin had noticed that he'd hurt himself while kicking the dummy. It wasn't pleasant. With a last glance at the training going on inside, the wheelchair was pulled back into the hallway and they were headed for his own training.

Not a few meters in, however, Sin raised his hand abruptly and the wheelchair stopped almost as abruptly. He turned to the Eidisi who was already about to unleash a waterfall of concerns on him and held up a finger, which stopped her from doing so. He pointed at the Ellune behind him, whom he couldn't fully turn to in his current state. "Thank." he signed. The Eidisi looked at the Ellune and translated for him. "He says thank you, Vesram." "No problem. Just doing my job." Vesram responded, his voice deep, which matched his muscular build quite well. Sin readjusted himself in his seat and allowed the nurses to push him through the hallway further. Sitting there, he hesitated for a moment, wondering whether it would be ok or not, and then tapped the Eidisi on her arm, not stopping their procession this time. "Also, thank." He signed at her. "Yes, yes. I know." She said, a little distant, before smiling at him. Sin realized that it was the first time he'd seen Lilea smile since the incident.

[Doran]

Sintih:

Knowledge:
Detection: Observing combatants from a distance
Detection: Observing difference in combat skill
Detection: Observing physicality-related training difficulties
Combat: Unarmed: Menochoros: Uses Open palm strikes
Psychology: Reactions to being observed failing could be shame or anger
Psychology: Reactions to weakness could be the same as those to failure

Loot: -
Wealth: -
Injuries: -
Renown: -
Magic XP: -
Skill Review: Appropriate to level.
Points: 10

- - -

Comments: I’m not entirely sure why Sintih is in a wheelchair at the beginning of the thread. Is it because he was beaten up?

Anyway, this was an enjoyable solo. There was something about the way you described Sintih’s state that immediately made me feel sorry for him. I hope that he’ll get better soon!

Sintih’s observing the Menochoros (?) class was interesting to read. I wonder if he’ll start to practice Menochoros himself once he’s gotten better.

Anyway, enjoy your rewards!

P.S.: I would have added “Endurance” to the list of skills used as it seemed to be quite exhausting for Sintih to stand up, for example.