Blood tears (Silver)

[Anadwen]

Athran's smile looked sad for a moment, before he turned back towards the road. "Yes, I fear so, too. There are things happening on the borders that speak for it. I feel sorry for the simple folk that will have to face these horrors - after all, there isn't always a knight nearby to save everybody."

He looked down. His voice was only a bit louder than a whisper. "And even knights can fail. Miserably."

It was the worse if someone like him failed in his errands, that what followed was painful - both for the body and mind... Seeing how innocent suffer under evil.

Only the sight of a town, drawing near, puled him from his thoughts. Several houses were visible even without having the sharp sight of an elf, and he could recognize them clearly. He raised his hand and pointed at the settlement. "It looks like we are almost there. Is that where you live?"

[SilverShadow]

Tavi's face became sad as his did. She had known him but a few hours, but already she hated to see him upset. Then, at the site of the city, she brightened. "Yep! That's Selevea! We're almost there."

((Want me to start a thread in the Riverlands, since technically that's where Moonspear is?))

[Anadwen]

Athran cheered a little. "It was a nice ride... But I can already feel my sword shaking in its sheath with impatience. The metal it's made of doesn't like waiting," he laughed. He stroke Sai's head and whispered something into his ear. The mount bolted forth, galloping in the dust towards the town.

"Come on! I don't know where your house is!" Athran cried out over his shoulder, grinning at Tavi.

[SilverShadow]

Tavi's laugh rang through the still air as Ryuu thundered after Sai. They reached the gates of the city in no time, and Tavi urged the horses to slow to a walk. They would need time to cool down from the run anyway, before they were put in the stable.

As they passed through cobbled streets filled with people, it seemed like there was always someone calling to them, greeting Tavi by name. She called back to each of them in turn, always by name. She briefly asked about their families, their recent journey, the harvest, or the day's trade. She never stopped Ryuu though, and they made good time through the city to a tall building close to the river. Ryuu stopped immediately, recognizing it as 'other home'.

"Here we are!" Tavi said, gesturing grandly to the building. "The stables are over here..." She hopped off Ryuu's back to open the gate for them before leading her horse into the stable. She handed the reins to a stable hand who seemed to appear out of the woodwork and thanked him as he lead the horses away.

[Anadwen]

Athran sled of Sai's back and let the stable hand take him away. Quickly dusting his black clothes off, he faced Tavi. "You will need a little food, your sword, some armour - I can borrow you parts, though - and water. That's all. If you need to go and take them from your house, I will wait you here. I have all I need."

He looked down at his sword and armour. He hardly needed anything but the weapon for training - with the experience and skill he had, it was highly unlikely for an apprentice to at least get close to his skin in training.

"And then, we will need a field. Preferably a big one." he explained.

[SilverShadow]

"You don't want anything to eat first?" Tavi asked in surprise. "You want to set your extra stuff down or anything?" He was seriously getting right down to business! Not that she minded, she wasn't tired from the ride.

[Anadwen]

"Eat?" Athran laughed, but it was a harsh, rough laughter. "Me? I don't need to eat. I will only take armour off when we'll be already there. I hardly need anything on while fighting... I will lend you my bracers and chainmail shirt, alright? The mail is light, it shouldn't be a problem. But be sure you have everything you need." he informed her, and crossing his arms on his chest, he leaned against the wall of the stable behind him.

[SilverShadow]

Tavi shrugged. "Alright, in that case I'll be right back." She jogged over to the stairs that zigzagged up the outside of the building and took them two at a time up to the highest apartment in the four story building. She stood at the door for a moment, messing with the key in the lock, then it opened and she vanished inside, closing the door behind her.

The apartment wasn't huge, but it was nice, clean, and well-cared-for. Tavi went straight to the kitchen and made herself a simple sandwich, eating it as she walked around gathering her other things. Last of all, she pulled her sword off its rack on the wall. It was a beautiful piece, slender and light, but still strong, with emeralds and peridots set into the silver hilt.

After only a couple minutes she reemerged from the apartment, strapping her sheath to her belt as she came down the stairs. She was dressed in dark leather armor, which hugged her slim form without restricting movement and had obviously been made specifically for her. Approaching Athran, she said, "The horses tell me that none of them are using the pasture in the back, so we can use that if you'd like. It's probably the closest thing to an empty field you'll find here in the city."

[Anadwen]

Athran nodded. "It will do. It's been quite dry, so the ground will be dry enough for us to train." He looked her up and down. "I see you already have some armour on. It's your choice if you want to borrow the chainmail, or not, then. I train without armour."

He gestured her to follow him. "Then let's go. The quicker we are, the more you can learn in a day... With a bit of luck, you will figure out how to hold that metal stick of yours." His lips twisted to a smirk as he pointed at the weapon by her side. Instinctively, he found the way to the field, and begun taking off his armour already on the way.

Eventually, he reached the field. His cape, leather coat, chainmail shirt, tunic, and rest of armour were simply thrown at the fence, while his scimitars and other blades he handled with great care. In the end, he was standing before her only in black boots, trousers, and wide belt, revealing his bare chest, muscles covered by white skin and tracing scars. The only thing her put back on were the bracers that covered half of his forearms, and gauntlets. He unsheathed his sword, and its black blade was glinting in the sunlight as he flashed it in front of himself in a lightning-fast pattern of smooth moves, slowly walking back.

[SilverShadow]

So this is the Black Sword, in all his...epic shirtlessness. Tavi though, allowing herself a mental chuckle at this. She drew her own sword, slowly, with calculation in her movements, trying to focus on his blade, rather than his frustratingly attractive chest.

She called on her elven ancestry to make her quick and agile, and to help her keep up with him and learn quickly. Then, she focused her mind, drawing on the focus she required to speak with animals and plants, a focus she had practiced and honed until it was as sharp as the tip of Athran's sword. She drew all of her focus to his blade, and ONLY his blade, blocking out everything else there was or could ever be in the world. As she focused on his blade, everything else faded to black, and she saw only what was important right now, in this exact moment. That sword, and it's movement.

As he started to walk backwards, she began to follow him, her eyes never leaving his blade. She lifted her own and began to copy his movements, working on matching them until she was mirroring at least a few of his moves the instant he did them.

[Anadwen]

Athran smirked at her attempts to imitate his movement, and slowed down. "No, not this. This is difficult... And doesn't have any effect in battle, except for looking good. You need to learn how to hold the sword, and basic moves, so you don't drop it in the middle of combat." He shook his head, the wisps of his long hair waving in the air. "That would be a shame!"

He came to her, and stopped her hands, moving them to the right position on the handle. "Like this," he explained her, himself showing her the right grip around the handle. "Hold it with right hand in the front for moving the blade. And keep the tip a bit up, so it isn't that heavy. Alright?"

[SilverShadow]

She tried to focus on his words and instructions, rather than his hand on hers, but if she was being completely honest, it wasn't easy. "Yeah, I've heard that people who drop their swords in the middle of battle have a tendency to wind up dead...or is that just a rumor?" she joked, meeting his eyes with a grin.

She let him shift her hands on the handle until she was holding it properly, trying to memorize the sensation of what 'correctly' felt like, so she could do it herself next time. "Like this?"

[Anadwen]

He chuckled at her remark, but focused at teaching. When he noticed that she did exactly what he asked of her, a smile spread on his face. "Exactly. You are learning fast. You will feel that you are holding it right, because it will be easier to move with it and your aim will be more accurate."

Athran made a few steps back, and held the Black Sword up, carefully watching her. "Now charge against me and try to smack me with it. Imagine me as an opponent in battle. What would you do if I could possibly attack you? Come on. Run at me and try to use that sword." he encouraged her.

She's quite attractive... Looks more elven than human... he thought, but then shook his head to chase those thoughts away. I'm teaching her. Not dating. Teaching!

[SilverShadow]

It was true that Tavi had always looked significantly elven, although she indeed looked even more so now, tall and slim in her tight leather armor, her long hair pulled back to reveal her slightly pointed ears. She grinned at his compliment, feeling rather triumphant.

He instructed her to attack him, and for a moment she didn't move. She would never win any battle through brute force alone, so she had to learn to use her mind and be clever. Like an elf. She studied his stance, his balance, where he was holding his sword. It only took a moment, and then she had her strategy.

She charged him as though she was going for a head-on attack, but at the last minute she swung her sword down in a swift chop toward his knees, the blade turned flat side toward him, though she didn't expect to actually land a blow on her first try. Simultaneously she ducked, lest he try to take advantage of her sword being so low.

[Anadwen]

Athran's sword moved as fast as a lightning in his hands. His feet immediately moved aside and forth, placing him by her side, and the blades of their swords clashed. The blade of the Black Sword pushed Tavi's sword to her shoulders, and itself pressed onto her body, rendering any move with the sword impossible. Athran softly placed one elbow at her back, stopping her from almost any movement at all.

"Now you can only move your legs. If I was you, I'd kick." he advised her. "Your tactics are good. If I was slower and less experienced, you would have slashed my knees and made me fall onto the ground. It's an unexpected, but clever move."

[SilverShadow]

Tavi, rather crestfallen at how easily she'd been thwarted, brightened at his compliment. "I figured my best shot in battle is always going to be strategy, not brute force." As she spoke, she relaxed her body, no longer on guard although he still had her thoroughly trapped, she didn't mind. She simply relaxed, and listened to him speak.

Then suddenly, out of nowhere, she kicked at his shin, trying to catch him by surprise. It wasn't a hard kick, but hard enough to leave a bruise if it landed. Her body remained relaxed even until her foot was off the ground.

[Anadwen]

Athran didn't even wince as she kicked him - her foot only hit the thick leather, which covered his shin. Suddenly, he let go off the blade with one hand, and it quickly slipped under her bent legs. he picked her up and flipped her over as if she didn't weight more than his sword itself. A cloud of dust arose from beneath her.

The elf stared at her for a while, then offered her his hand. "I'm sorry if it was a tad crude. Are you alright?" he asked.

[SilverShadow]

THUD. Tavi landed face down in the dust, startled. She rolled over so she was on her back, gazing up at him. As he offered her a hand she accepted it and rose gracefully to her feet, laughing all the while. "Smooth moves, Athran! I definitely didn't see that one coming! Yeah, I'm alright." She was still grinning as she brushed herself off.

[Anadwen]

Athran showed her his typical confident smirk. "Five hundred years of experience make some good moves. Plus, I know both my body, and my sword. I am completely sure of what I am capable of doing with them... I tend to risk and go beyond that, though." he shrugged and put the sword back to his sheath.

"When you are ready, go at me with the sword. I won't use any weapons, but don't be afraid. It's no point trying to train you with the Black Sword in my hands. I see there's no need for me to show you the basic moves, because you already know them. You're fast and clever - but have to be more daring." he explained her, moving back again.

[SilverShadow]

Tavi picked up her sword and slowly brushed it off, staring at it carefully. She was aware of exactly where Athran's body was, but she resisted the urge to check, lest her eyes give away her plan. She adjusted her grip on the sword like she was trying to get it just perfect, her stance still relaxed.

Then, in a sudden burst of movement that was rapidly becoming her trademark, she started forward, then used the weight of the sword to spin herself in a circle and put more force behind the swing she once again aimed at his knees. The whole thing was swift, graceful, and for any ordinary warrior, unpredictable. But of course, Athran was no ordinary warrior.