13 Saun 717
"Are you alright?!" The alarm in Judah's voice triggered something inside Aeodan, but the younger twin suppressed the feeling. He was appreciative of Judah's concern, but would not admit that to himself. Not for the reasons for which he felt it. Instead, he just plowed ahead, shrugging.
"I suppose so. It was strange. One moment, I was in the mound by myself. The next, I was someone else, and there was another in there with me. I am sure it was a vision of some kind, I just don't know how or why. And since last night, I haven't had any recurrences." Aeodan's eyes landed on Judah's, and he could see the concern inscribed in them.
Judah was the one waiting this time, as Aeodan was late for their scheduled training session. The events of the trial before had left him worn out physically, and more curious than he'd ever been mentally. So he'd spent most of the night trying to recall every small detail of the fever vision about the LYCHL and the shaman. Almost every bit of the darkness was gone by the time he finished scribbling furiously every detail he could recall. And then, he realized, he was supposed to have met Judah at first light for another training session.
Aeodan was exhausted, but being in Judah's presence invigorated him. Still, he did not feel particularly keen on being thrown around that trial, and he knew that Judah could sense that in him.
"Well, I think this trial's lesson will be a bit easier on your physical body. This lesson focuses on control. Rather than learn the Tilao, here you are instructed to learn your opponent. If you know them, know their weaknesses. If you are just meeting them, observe them and learn their weaknesses. If you see a man limping, aim for the wounded leg. If you see a scar on a man's forearm, aim for that forearm. Once you have identified that weakness, you are in control."
Judah reached out and laid his large hand on Aeodan's leg. Fire tingled up his spine, but Aeodan held his composure. Quickly, Judah squeezed his thumb and middle fingers together, sending a blindingly agonizing pain through Aeodan's body. He yelped in pain.
"Hey!" He shoved Judah's hand away, and the soldier's trademark mischievous smile pulled at the corners of his lips. Aeodan just glared at him.
"I've seen the way your legs stiffen at too much time in one position. I see how you gingerly trade pressure between them when you first stand. You've done well to mask them, but I look for those things. Always know the weakness, and you're always in control."
Aeodan's face burned with rage. He sneered at Judah.
"And you think you need to know my weaknesses? You seek to control me?" Aeodan's words were acid. Judah, though, just shrugged.
"I seek to control every situation. Not because I think you're a threat, or that you'd want to hurt me at all... But because being in control means not having to ever worry. It's why, at any given time, I am far more likely to survive than those around me. I am ready and waiting for any random passerby to become an enemy. And I intend to survive." He shrugged, his candor lessening Aeodan's anger. Instead, it was replaced with embarrassment.
"I'm sorry." He muttered it, and Judah just chuckled.
"No need, Aeodan. I put pressure on your legs to show you that I'm always observing, even I don't think I'll need the information. Be constantly vigilant, and you'll never be out of control."
Aeodan gritted his teeth. Every sentence that Judah had uttered contained the word 'control'. Why in the nine hells was it so important?
"You keep saying control. Why is being in control so important?" Aeodan's tone was far more accusatory than he meant for it to be. Judah seemed not to notice.
"Because if you control an opponent, you don't have to kill him to defeat him. You can subdue him without a variable factor. If he is in control, you're forced to act out of desperation. That leads to death."
Aeodan could tell that Judah was speaking from personal experience, but chose not to push the subject. If he wanted to, Judah would offer the information willingly. Until then, Aeodan would just go along with his philosophy.
"I understand that. How does this control translate into what I've learned?" Aeodan asked, his mind ever seeking to make the connection between things. Judah smiled again, and something in Aeodan stirred.
"This session, we will build on what we learned last time. Last time, I taught you how to take an opponent from a position of opportunity to a position of defense. Now I'm going to show you how to turn that forced transition into a way for you to control your opponent."
With that, Judah stood. He held out an arm to help Aeodan to his feet, and then stood across from him.
"In the interest of not throwing you, shall we start from the ground position?" Judah showed Aeodan how to lay like he'd just been thrown. Gripping Aeodan's wrist, Judah applied pressure to his elbow joint, pushing it the wrong way.
"Ow!" Aeodan protested.
"This joint is an important one. A little pressure can go a long way here, and with the right application, you can force an opponent to submit to you... Or break his arm to remove the threat. Watch me as I do this, slowly."
Still gripping Aeodan's wrist, Judah wrapped one leg over his upper torso, and the other on the lower half. In between, Aeodan's arm was held firmly against Judah's body. When he leaned backwards, pressure was applied to both Aeodan's shoulder and his elbow at once. He instinctively tightened his arm muscles, which made the pressure hurt more. Almost immediately, Judah let go.
"I applied literally no strength to that hold. That joint lock is called an "armbar". After you throw an opponent over the shoulder, you can apply this joint lock immediately. You're already holding their wrist. Just wrap your legs like I have, and lie backwards. Natural force does all the work for you, and your opponent works against himself trying to escape."
He smiled and let Aeodan up, lifting him the last few inches.
"Try on me a few times before we go onto the next hold, okay?" He assumed the position and allowed Aeodan to learn how to do the armbar. With a few exceptions, Aeodan pick the move up quickly. Judah was very impressed, and Aeodan... Aeodan felt something too.
