I walked into the foyer to gather Sert for a training exercise only to find him and Meli waiting for me. I examined them both physically and mental to discern if they had been awoken by some outside element. I hide the laugh that formed in my throat at my own paranoia when I spotted the basket of fruits, bread, nuts, and cheese Meli carried.
“Since we do not have a private garden,” she began shyly, “I thought a breakfast at the nearby pool would be acceptable substitute.”
“And I know that you would wish to start our training as quickly as possible.” Sert hazarded. “And visiting Atlantis would be another concern, sir.” he added.
“Very true on all counts.” I replied. “But is it prudent with the Royal Guard Captains seeking me out?” I continued. Meli had glanced questioningly at Sert but he simply shrugged nonchalantly at me. “We best be going then.”
The meal was filling but unlike anything seen outside of Atlantis. The churned soft cheese that is unknown in the outer world spread easily upon the simple and fresh bread. The variety of fruits and nuts that spanned the globe itself was an oddity in this supposedly closed culture. The segregated life Atlantis lead would have to change if it was not to be seen as a enemy to the rest of the globe. We did not speak during the meal more than simple statements of fact while my companions' minds buzzed with unasked questions about the foreign shores that I came from.
We arrived at the trainees' field after an leisurely hour of walking. This would be the first chance I had to see what my “honour guard” Sertian could do and show me where he needed to improve his skills. The field already held a detachment of guard trainees for the Council's military lead by a squad leader that appeared strict and close minded like most military personnel. Meli stood slightly behind us as we lend on the fence that enclosed the training area. We watched in silence as the squad leader had them repeating exercises of attack and defence while screaming warnings to them of the openings they showed to their imaginary opponents.
“Do not expect our sessions to be as structured or repetitive as what you are seeing.” I warned Sert quietly. “Not all opponents will try to best you honourably when in combat situations.” I added softer still.
“But without honour, the opponent shows their weakness and carelessness of proper rules of combat.” Sert returned.
“True.” I exclaimed. My eyes stay upon the the trainer as he pushed his men in this repetitive dance. “But honour will not stop a non-Atlantian leaving a dagger between your shoulder blades if you let them.” I continued out loud. Sert nodded slowly next to me as I felt a revulsion of acting dishonourably flowed from him like a breaking wave. “Whoever said that an honourable fighter cannot defeat a dishonourable foe without losing their honour?” I added with a chuckle.
“My first lesson?” Sert interjected.
“The most important lesson any Atlantian that would visit the outside world needs to learn.” I remarked casually. Sert nodded slowly once more as we continued watching the trainees going through their paces. It was nearly another two hours before the squad leader called a halt and pulled his trainees aside to discuss what they had learned during this session.
“Shall we?” I asked. My answer came in the form of Sert vaulting the small wall and waiting inside the enclosure for me. I hopped the fence chuckling before both of us walked to take our places in the middle of the field. Sertian placed himself in a sparing position as I stood calmly looking at him. My sword slipped forward from the scabbard to dart at my opponent. He easily tapped the sword aside with his own as he shifted into a fighting stance. I had remained standing calmly with my sword in hand as I nodded to him. I moved on him using a series of quick sword jabs testing his defensive speed. He parried the blows leaving minimal openings for me as we began circling each other in the training field cautiously.
The squad leader was drawn by the sounds of the clashing sword. He called his squad to the fence to watch this session calling it an “exercise of higher techniques”. The squad stood in awe at first as Sert continued to parry my sword thrusts as I increased the speed. Once I read from his mind that he wanted something new, I stepped back which he mirrored instinctively. He smiled at me easily as he watched my stance which was now defensive.
“Attack.” I ordered calmly. Sert launched at me with a series of quick jabs, thrusts, and slices showing a variety of techniques blended together flawlessly. I blocked the first half of his attacks before turning them back at him in matching form of his attacks. He rose to the challenge blocking the counter attacks at first before beginning to reply with his own counter attacks. His movement was fluid from attack to parry and into counter attack making me even happier at having been given him as a protegee in the military arts. We stepped away from each other again as a cheer rose from the trainees and their squad leader. They spoke loudly of the elegance, beauty, and nobility of the session they had been fortunate to watch.
“And now to play tricks.” I stated. A mischievousness gleamed shone in my eyes making Sert step an extra step back tightening his stance into a stronger defensive position. My sword doubled in my hands becoming twin blades in my grasp spinning in a closed arc before me as I charged at him. He thrusted his sword forward two handed in a blocking move to arrest both of my blades while aiming toward my throat. My blades locked crossed against his but this was the feigned attack as I continued moving forward lift his blade upward as I dodged under my weapons. The shrieking of metal against metal pierced the air forcing the trainees to cover their ears. As my swords touched Sert's sword hilt, I could see the confusion in his eyes at what I was attempting to truly do. To his benefit of training, Sert tilted his sword to shoot my blades over his head thinking it would advert my true attack. The oomph that escaped him as my head and shoulders drove hard into his mid-section between his chest plate and the top of his stomach knocking him off his feet easily.
I rolled away from him holding my blades close to my body before rising with a twist. My swords flipped in my grips to spring out at my side as i spiralled at him with the blades out ready to end it. Sert had but a second to realize what I was doing as he rose to his feet to face me. I felt the spark of a plan form in his mind as he was dropping once more to his knees to roll under my spiralling blades and twist to rise behind me. He held his sword defensively along his forearm while his out stretched hand was placed low ready to be used to grapple either sword or me armour in the next attack. I had stopped a few feet away with my twin blades lining my forearms defensively in a nearly flawless mimic of Sert position.
“Good recovery and thinking on and off your feet.” I commented with a crisp nod. The sudden silence from the sideline draw my attention as I felt it had done the same to Sertian.
“It is not dishonourable to avoid an attack that you do not know how to defend against or turn into a counter.” Sert replied. His eyes glanced toward the sidelines as mine were doing. The squad of trainees stared slack jaw at us while their leader had gone white as his mouth worked with no sound escaping him. I could read from the squad leader's mind the awe and fear of seeing me turn one attack into another without pause.
“Foul!” the squad leader finally bellowed. His squad turned slowly to face him with confusion that I felt as keenly as their leaders' anger at me. “Not allowing your sparring partner the chance to recover before you attacked again is a show of dishonour.” he continued. The squad of trainees glance from him to Sert and myself who had begun laughing at his words. He began moving at us still angered by my little test of Sert's ability to recover quickly.
“Did he dodge the attack?” I asked between chuckles.
“Yes, but you gave him no time to recover.” the leader retorted. His anger was palpable as he came nearer to us. Sert moved to stand by me with his sword still in hand ready to do his duty to me.
“I recovered enough to be able to dodge the attack.” Sert replied. I could feel the anger growing in him at the slight this man had placed upon me. “Therefore proper time was given to me squad leader.” he continued. The vehemence showed in his slurring the man's title as if he was beneath him.
“And in the world beyond the borders of noble Atlantis, they will not give you time to recover when they seek to remove your head from your body.” I stated calmer. My hand was ready to snatch Sert's wrist if he tried rectifying the man for his words. A tall armour man walked casually and silently toward the squad leader's back causing his trainees to clear the training field as Meli was marching to join us. The man glared down at the squad leader with wolfish eyes and his hand hug at his side showing claws having sprung from his finger tips.
“Captain Ent could judge if this attack was honourable or not.” Meli stated. She smiled up at the wolf that had become the squad leader's shadow on the field. The leader glared angrily at her not hiding his annoyance at her words. “Or is the Captain of the Lupus Guards' honour questionable to you?” she asked politely.
“What would the leader of a family of mongrels mating with beasts know of honour?” the squad leader retorted angrily. As he spat on the ground to show his vehemence, the squad of trainees fully vacated the field and stared in fear at the man standing behind their leader. Mekiliean curtsied toward us as Sert suddenly looked above the man he wished to put in his place. He nodded and half bowed before stepping back with Meli as she back away in silence.
“I would watch my words sir when the object of your derision stand behind you.” I stated calmly. The leader half laughed before staring around him realizing everyone had cleared the field with the exception of myself. “You would have lost your head by now if I was in his position.” I added quickly. I stepped back to give the man room to turn toward his nightmare. I heard him gulp hard as he turned to face the crest of “Royal Guard Captain” etched in the larger man's metallic chest plate. His eyes slowly rose to meet Ent's wolfish ones before feinting from the sudden fear that had taken his mind. A growling chuckle escaped the Lupus Guard Captain as he stood over the fallen squad leader.
“Let this be a life lesson for the recruits.” Ent stated loudly. “Always know who stands behind you when you are being belligerent.” he continued with a hearty growling chuckle. He stepped over the leader's unconscious form to stand before me. I held my ground holding a defensive position with my twin blades running along my forearms ready to spar against this larger foe. “You know how wolves and warriors think.” Ent added. His two-handed blade slide silently from the sheath as he held it one handed without problems as he took the stance of an attacker.
The flurry of blows, blocks, and counters blurred at the speed we combatants moved during the sparring session. Then we augmented the attacks by adding fists and feet in their moves. Ent stepped back and bowed defeat as I removed the sword he used from his grip. My twin swords return to a single blade in my hands that I tossed to the side of the field next to Ent’s two-handed sword. Placing myself in the stance of an open handed fighter, I waited patiently knowing that this fight was far from over.
“You think your simple hands can equal my claws?” Ent asked as the nails of his fingers and toes grew to full length claws as a low challenging growl rumble from him.
“Wolf claws versus bird talons.” I returned. My hands covered themselves with the scale that cover raptor birds' talons including a razor sharp nail on each of his fingers. “I am called Kestrel for a reason.” I added before launching into his attack.
While Captain Ent fought land bound, I airborne in my fighting style lifted by wings none could see. It was a short fight even with the incredible speed both of us had at our disposal. Ent found himself flatten to the ground on his stomach as I perched upon his shoulders with one lone claw at his throat. A growling laughter rumbled out from the defeated showing he accepted to ending of the battle in earnest.
“You fight well for a being not trained in Atlantis.” Ent stated with a sigh. I gently stepped off his back moving quickly to a polite distance from him. Ent rose slowly. He turned to face me bowing deeply at me as I stood in a feigned relaxed pose. The wolfish features of my sparring partner had slipped away from him except for the feral eyes that remained glowing in his calm and pensive face. “Maybe I should ask if you can give pointers to our guards about defensive styles against airborne attackers.” he mused out loud.
“I believe the Royal Guards do consist of a few aerial forms that could help with that without my intervention.” I returned easily. He nodded slowly at me showing this idea would be hard to sell to the others. “Or some of the allies of the winged type could be asked for assistance.” I continued mercilessly. The snort of laughter that escaped Ent showed the disdain the beastly guards had for their winged allies. “Or your Spirit Dragons could teach you land bound guards to be aerial the hard way.” I suggested with a sneer. Ent glared at me with a look of fear and nervousness.
“Nothing but another dragon would be foolish enough to spar against a dragon.” he stated in a rumbling voice. “And none are foolish enough to attempt pitting themselves against a Spirit Dragon.” he added quickly.
“And my honour would force me to accept and fight with all of my abilities against anything even a Spirit Dragon, if they challenged me.” I returned caustically. Ent's nostril flared as he searched for the smell of fear coming from me. His eyes widen in shock and fear as he smelt no fear coming from this strange Envoy that stood before him.
“Very well meet Lord Kestrel, oh fearless one.” he stated with a raised eyebrow. “And this comes not just from myself but from my full pack.” he added with a formal bow. The recruits stood staring in awe at me. I felt both their eyes and the mixed emotions bordering on reverence that washed through the recruits targeted at me as I stood in silence. Sert and Meli approached slowly as I felt the same shocked mix of emotion raging through them.
“You would be the second being in existence to have received that honour Sir.” Sert mumbled as he stared at Ent's retreating back.
“Her Holiness would be the only other being that the wolf pack has bowed to as a whole group.” Meli continued. The awe that warped her tones was even more clear to my ear than the strong emotions that flooded from her mind.
“Just more attention for me to face from the Council.” I whispered to them. Both nodded in silent agreement. We returned to our residence while I could sense the conflict within my retinues' minds on explaining this to Annianka without causing ill favour to fall upon Ent's shoulder. Neither had spotted the white tigress in human form that watched us with her new replacement tiger at her side.
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