Visar stretched for his class, ignoring the rain drops falling on him.  While most trainees liked to abstain from training in the rain, Visar always forced himself to remain in the yards during bad weather as long as it was not too bad.  If one always trained in daylight and good weather, then they would only be fully prepared to face situations in such.  Visar only hoped the ones he was training felt the same.  Sure enough, Adela came, seemingly not too bothered by the fact that it was raining.

 

"Good morning!  What a fine day we are having!" he said sarcastically, and then gestured to the wooden daggers they were to train with today.  "Hopefully the wood won't be ruined or anything" he added, gesturing to the wooden training daggers they were to use.  "We'll use just one to start with." he said, wasting no time in beginning the lesson.  "Try to 'kill' me with it." he said, handing a dagger to Adela, and then holding his hands up close to his chest, watching the hand that held the dagger closely, prepared to intercept just about any blow.  While he was confident he could do fairly well defending himself against most attacks, he wanted to make sure he was on top of his game.  There was no guarantee of surviving a knife attack, after all.  Even someone good at it could fall.

Adela was sitting on the end of her cot, trying not the feel the eyes that followed her every move. Lone had been spending a lot more time with her and Admin. Alternating between training with Ada and taking his meals with her. It was obvious to anyone with eyes that he had a crush on Adela, and with her mutual attraction she was not sure how to handle it.

 

Adamin had offered all sorts of solutions to her ‘problem’; none of which she was willing to take. So rather than be embarrassed, Del allowed Lone to watch as she ran her brush through her hair. “I am sorry that you cannot take the lesson with me, but Visar Gaidin is teaching only me. Perhaps we can train together another time.” The major problem between her and Lone was that while Lone was in love with Adela, Del had a crush on the world. Only first discovering boys at nearly 20 years of age was strange enough, but doing it in a world full of dangerous men in uniforms was more than one girl could bare. She liked Lone, and thought they could perhaps have a future, but not now. Not with instructors like Visar in the yards.

 

Setting down her brush she examined the effect in the mirror. She would still never be anything close to slim, but she was slowly becoming more than fond of her curves. “We can have dinner after my class. I will come find you.” Without giving him time to make a move Del rushed out the door and out into the Yards.

 

The room she shared with her brother was small and cramped, and on the interior of the building. She had not heard the rain and instantly regretted her lack of a cloak. Within minutes the rain had slicked her hair to her head and was making a stab at soaking through her clothes. So much for looking presentable she muttered as she broke into a run. Hoping Visar would not cancel their lesson, she broke into a smile when she saw him waiting for her.

 

“A truly wonderful day to train.” Del said with nothing of Visar’s sarcasim. It was wonderful to have the personal attentions of a Warder. Taking one of the wooden blades in her hands she smiled. Of all the weapons’ she picked she was the most familiar with this one. "Try to 'kill' me with it."

 

She looked up into his eyes and suddenly wanted nothing less than to kill him. Blushing she pulled her eyes away and tried to remember what she knew of the weapon in her hand. Turing the blade around in her hand she quickly lunged forward towards her teachers neck.

 

Visar frowned only slightly as he saw Adela avert her gaze for a moment.  What did that mean? he wondered idly.  But her swift attack took his primary attention.  Seeing her hand lance out, Visar fanned his right hand out, slapping against her wrist and deflecting the attack away from his neck.  He then stayed on her arm, gripping tightly, and closed in, his left hand now gripping her elbow.  Her arm outstretched, he bent it so as not to break her arm, and cranked it harshly down, sending Adela sprawling face-first into the mud.  Keeping a grip on her hand even then, Visar deftly took the knife out of her weakened grasp.  Not pausing, he shifted the blade to his other hand to have a solid grip and stabbed down at her while she lay on the ground.  He stopped the strike however, merely tapping her back with the blunted tip.

 

"You are dead." Visar announced.  He knew she would probably be a little shocked at being treated so roughly, but he was only doing her a favor by not going easy on her as other male warders tended to be against female trainees.

 

He helped her up, making sure she was not injured, and gave her back the dagger.

 

"Again." he said, and again lie in wait, his hands ready close to his chest.

As her hand rushed forward Del faltered and any chance she had was lost in that moment. She was looking straight into her instructors eyes as his hand collided with her wrist and the rest was a blur as he sent her to the ground. She felt the light tap of the ‘blade’ into her back and she sighed.

 

The last time she’d held a true dagger she’d been facing a drunk at an Inn. It was far different from facing a man who could kill her with his bare hands. Accepting his help to rise she accepted the dagger back and took a few steps back. She would not try a thrust again. It was obvious that it would only end with her face in the mud. Using the back of her left hand she wiped some of the rain from her eyes, and reversed her grip on the dagger. She held her thumb over the end of the hilt to keep her hand from sliding as she looked for any weakness in the older man.

 

Using her smaller size to her advantage she moved in quickly and tried to slash at his neck again, moving her arm in a rapid motion from right to left. She hadn’t really thought it would work, but it had been worth a try.

 

Visar stood on guard again, watching her hand, gripping the blade reversed now, for any hint as to where she might strike.  She lashed out quickly with her arm, trying to slice his neck.  While she almost reached her target, Visar managed to get a good grip on the inside of her arm before the slash would have hit him, stopping the blow inches from his neck.  He did not hesitate, solidifying his grip while weakening her stance.  He lashed out with a swift kick to her stomach, and while she pulled back to try to block the wind being knocked out of her, he followed her just as quickly, using both of his arms to lever hers down to the side in a vice-gripped lock.  Stepping strongly behind her lead leg, he used the pain applied to her arm and the leverage against her leg to throw her down, this time more safely and slightly more gently upon her back. 

 

Once she was down, he turned her hand, forcing the blade down to her chest with both his hands against her one.  It thumped softly against the target.

"Again, dead." he stated.  Letting her up, Visar let her have a breather from being thrown down.

 

"How did I defend myself?  Even though I did not have a weapon?" Visar asked her, making her figure out what he had done for herself so that she would understand in her own way.

As she was tumbled to the mud yet again a small bubble of anger crept up inside her; she was a woman for Lights sake! Did he really have to treat her so roughly? Pushing herself back up onto her feet she glared at her instructor. Her eyes were startling dark blue at times, and when she was angry they seemed to almost glow. Watching him cautiously she caught her breath and adjusted her clothes. She was already caked with mud from knees to neck and they’d barely begun. So much for wishing to make a good impression!

 

"How did I defend myself?  Even though I did not have a weapon?" By picking on a helpless girl! she felt like shouting, but instead she only frowned. Del was hardly a girl and hardly helpless, but he was so much larger than her, with broad shoulders, and a chiseled physique… suddenly her cheeks were glowing and she hoped he took it as embarrassment for being throw in the mud; not because she’d found herself thinking about how strong and handsome he was.

 

“Well, for one my attack was too slow. At least against someone who is trained at fighting.” She suspected he was digging for a more technical answer and her mind searching, trying to remember just how she’d moved. “ By the way I held the knife, I narrowed down my methods of attack..and…trying to slash the way I did I would have had to have completed the entire motion before my blade would have found flesh. Given all my mistakes you were easily able to avoid the blade. You were conscious of my movements and took advantage of my flaws.” She hoped that her answer would satisfy, she knew very little of weapons, but she didn’t want to look like a fool in her teachers eyes.

 

 

Visar listened.  Her attacks had been sufficiently speedy in his eyes, but he let her continue with what she thought had led to her on the ground.  He gestured with the wooden dagger, now in his hands.

 

"Your attacks were good, executed with good power and speed." he said, giving her some encouragement.  If he had not been prepared for an attack the second slash might have gotten him.  "And the way you held the knife was fine.  I wasn't asking you about why you failed, for your attacks would have killed any unsuspecting person if this was sharp, but rather how I succeeded."

 

He decided he would give her the answer rather than let her fish around for it.

 

"Control.  It's all about control.  When you attacked, I successfully controlled your weapon arm, and from there it was not hard to put your entire body off balance.  Without that control, without a solid grip, I might have been able to block the first strike or the second, but you would have eventually killed me.  Do you understand?"

 

Visar let the weight of that sink in.  Dagger defense was all about controlling the arm with the dagger.  The first step, more important than anything else, was not being hit by the deadly blade and obtaining some form of grip to have one precious moment to do a technique.

 

Holding the practice dagger, Visar gestured to Adela.

"I'm going to attack you now, starting slowly and moving faster.  What I want you to do, is block the strike with both of your palms, and immediately grab the weapon arm, ideally on the forearm just above the wrist.  If I come from below, fall down on the arm and move your stomach back to create extra space.  If I come from above, angling down at your chest, reach out and catch the arm before the blow reaches its full power.  Once you get it down with two hands, try experimenting with one handed blocks or deflections.  Try."

 

Visar advanced, moving into close range so that he did not have to take a step to hit her with the dagger.  At this close range, there was very little time to dodge or react, and sometimes simply blocking the stab was the only thing one could do.  He thrust at about half speed at Adela's stomach, prepared to soften the blow a little if she missed.

Adela noticed that she was chewing on her bottom, and forced herself to stop. It was an obvious habit that immediately pointed out her distress. She so hated to be wrong in Visar’s eyes…but why?

 

She nodded at his correction and mentally noted his advice. It seemed like such an obvious answer to control the arm that was the threat, but obvious or not she had no delusions that it would be easy. Watching the wooden blade in his hand as she would of steel she tried to anticipate his movement. Her stomach fluttered and her thoughts would not still. Time and time again she tried to find the Void, but it wouldn’t come. There was nothing lethal about wood, used in this way, but she couldn’t wipe away the image that she could die. If this were real she would be at an extreme disadvantage and a dagger wound would be the last thing she would feel.

 

As he moved closer to her Adela had to force herself not to take a step back. This would be the first time she’d ever been attacked with a weapon. In practice or in life, and she was so nervous that all she could hear was her own heart pounding in her ears.

 

She saw his hand start to move forward and panicked! She tried to turn her body to the right to dodge the blade, but had it been steel it would have sank cleanly into her ribs. “I..I’m sorry.” Her hands shook just slightly, and she was forced to take deep breaths to calm her nerves. Somehow she’d convinced herself that sparing would be just like one of countless fist fights she’d seen Adamin confronted with in bars, but watching a weapon come towards you was nowhere near the same.  “I’ve never done this before, and I am nervous. Please, I would like to try again.”

 

Her face was crimson to her hair, but she took a step back and tried to make herself ready for an attack. Her hands still shook slightly, but this time when he thrust towards her she was ready. Trembling hands grasped at his wrist and forced his arm away from flesh. He was much stronger than her, and her arms were straining, but she was alive. Releasing him she set herself up again. This time he came at her from above and she was able to catch him arm just barely in time. Over and over he came at her, and sometimes she failed, but she always was ready to try again. Her nerves were sated slightly, and with each attack her trembling disappeared, until it was gone. She still knew that if this were real she could die, but today would not be that day.

 

Visar paused as she missed her first attack.  She seemed awfully embarrassed, perhaps more than she should have been.  But she gathered herself, and made a good attempt the next time.  Visar drilled with her for a while, attacking again and again, slowly picking up speed.

 

Finally, he was approaching something very close to full speed, and she was catching most of them.  That would have to do for now.

 

"Good, you're getting the hang of it." he said, pausing.

 

"Now just this grab alone might not save you.  The attacker's first reaction is going to be to try to get the knife back and keep attacking you, so you'll have to do something to prevent him from doing that. Here's where you get lots of options.  Such as..."

 

Visar had Adela attack with the knife, slowly so that she could see what he was doing.  He grabbed with two hands, and then let go with one of the hands to take the knife from her, rotating the point of the blade to her elbow.

 

"Against someone stronger than you, you can still take the knife if you do it quickly enough, no matter how strong their grip is.  If you do it just right, you should be alright, though there's always the risk you'll cut your hand.  The key: take the knife in the direction of least resistance, where there's an opening in their hand."

 

Visar showed Adela how to lever the dagger out of his grip by either rotating it straight back to the inside of his elbow, or to the side gripping the flat of the blade, pushing it out the gap in the fingers.

 

"Taking the knife is always a good option, even after you've done some other technique to soften your opponent up, like I did with you earlier.  Practice this."

 

Visar directed attack after attack against her, giving her some resistance at her grab and a good strong grip to make sure she was taking the knife properly.