Almund
12th Cylus, 718
12th Cylus, 718
“ALRIGHT YOU SLACK-JAWED INGRATES, FORM UP!”
It was at times like this that Tio was reminded why he’d hired Teddie Wrathbone to be his first mate. Being an element soldier once upon a time had taught him not just how to discipline himself, but how to maintain discipline among others to, which was a skill sorely needed to keep the ragtag group of brigands Tio employed as his crew in line. It was the balance of power and teamwork between him and his two officers that’d been keeping the Skylance Pirates running smoothly so far: Tio led the way forwards with his ambitions and enthusiasm, Grace provided the supplies for the crew to follow him (and stopped him if it seemed like he was leading them into more trouble than they could handle), and Teddie gave anyone that tried to slack off a good kick in the backside so they didn’t fall behind. They were essentially the rider, reins and whip that drove a horse; without even one of them they’d be completely out of control.
And now more than ever Tio needed to make sure he had unquestionable control of his crew, because a plan was starting to take shape that he needed them to all be in their best shape for. Next season a ship with a very special prize would be sailing past Scalvoris waters, a ship larger and more heavily guarded than anything his crew had faced yet. His plan to capture it was ambitious to say the least; it’d taken him a season to get approval for it past Grace, and if even a single person didn’t play their part properly it could spell disaster for them all. Therefor in order to make sure everything went as planned Tio had decided to hold a number of training sessions for the rest of the season so that everybody would be fully prepared for what lay ahead.
Red sand crunched like popcorn under the feet of him and his crewmembers as they lined up across the stretch of beach, standing in their own rough estimations of how a soldier at attention stood as Teddie slowly walked in front of them, seeming more akin to a drill sergeant than a criminal. While these extra training sessions had been Tio’s idea, all affairs involving crew training were Teddie’s responsibility to lead, and he took the job so seriously that he’d refused to relinquish control of them.
It was only when he’d arrived at the beach a little while ago that Tio had realised why Teddie had been so adamant about it. The ex-soldier had total, undisputed authority when in the training ground that not even Tio could overturn; it had been a condition he’d insisted on when Tio had first hired him to join the crew, and by setting foot on the beach Tio had inadvertently put himself under his first mate's command for the duration of the session. Teddie had been looking for an opportunity to whip his captain’s physically unimposing ass into shape for a while now, and while under normal circumstances he had no authority to make his superior attend any training sessions, it was a completely different story if he came to one by himself.
“We'll start of with a nice, easy warm up: a hundred push-ups, sit-ups, and crunches!” Teddie announced. Immediately cries of protest sounded out from the crew, but were halted as the ex-soldier shot them a sharp glare. “Oh, and the last one to finish them will be doing a mile long run down the beach, so I suggest you put your backs into it. Your time starts now!”
Whatever reluctance the crew had to start evaporated the moment Teddie cracked his knuckles loud enough to be heard in Rynmere, and all at once they dropped to their knees and began doing press-ups at record speed. The only one not joining in was Grace, who sat on a rock a little while away smirking to herself and jotting down notes in her journal. Technically Teddie had the right to demand that she join in too, but that didn't mean he was stupid enough to do so. She had the power to make their voyages hell for anyone on the crew, and had proven herself more than willing to do so.
Tio forced himself to push his body up over and over at a pace he'd never thought himself capable of. He would cheat in a heartbeat if he could but he could feel Teddie’s gaze on him, counting the rises to make sure he didn't do exactly that. It wasn't long before his arms started to turn to jelly, and he shot a desperate look over to Grace.
“Help me!” He mouthed.
Grace’s smirk growing a little wider at the edges was the only reply he received before she looked back to her book.
With a snarl of frustration, Tio grit his teeth and attacked the exercises again with renewed effort, determined to power through and get it over and done with as quickly. His arms began to turn to rubber, as did his abs and legs when he turned to the sit-ups and scrunches, but after an arduous few breaks the torment was over and done with, and Tio collapsed onto the beach back first to catch his breath as the people who'd been slower than him struggled to finish.
He barely had a moment to recover before Teddie was back to shouting again, ordering them all to get back onto their feet and take a plain wooden staff from Grace. The Eidisi had been able to procure then for the day after some ‘aggressive haggling’ with one of the merchants in town, and handed them out to the wheezing crew members wordlessly as they approached, watching them all as always with eyes that seemed to silently make note of and store everything they saw.
“NOW ALL OF YOU PAIR UP AND ASSUME FIGHTING STANCES. YOU'LL EACH HAVE A PRACTICE MATCH WITH YOUR PARTNER, WITH VICTORY OBTAINED BY DISARMING THEM, PINNING THEM TO THE GROUND FOR TEN TRILLS, OR FORCING THEM TO SURRENDER. THE LOSERS WILL AGAIN BE GOING FOR A MILE-LONG RUN. NOW, BEGIN!”
By sheer bad luck Tio found himself paired with Garozz ‘the Hairy’, the ship's doctor who happened to stand at least a good foot taller than him. Garozz was a gentle soul at heart and rarely resorted to violence, but in a training match like this Tio had absolutely no doubt at all that the Lotharro would kick his ass six ways into next season.
With his bigger size and strength Garozz was able to hold the wooden staff like a longsword, and swung it at Tio’s head with perhaps just a little too much vigor for a training match (and coincidentally enough Teddie seemed to take that exactly moment to stop watching him like a hawk, the sneaky sod.) Tio ducked down to avoid it and rolled backwards as Garozz followed up with another low swing, aiming to put some distance between them. Not only did Garozz have the advantage of natural strength and size but a longer reach as well, which meant he'd have to play it smart if he wanted to win this.
It was unlikely that Garozz would attack carelessly on his own, so Tio decided to make his own opening. He stepped into Garozz’s attack range, and held his staff up to block as his opponent’s staff came hurtling towards his head. By the spirits this guy could swing! Why wasn't he on the raiding crew? He continued to block as Garozz swung wide, heavy blows down on top of him, keeping his heels dug firmly into the sand and waiting for the right moment.
And eventually an opportunity presented itself: Garozz stepped noticeably too wide as he wound up for another strike, causing him to hesitate as his balance fell askew for a moment. Seeing his chance, Tio sprang forwards so that he was too close for Garozz’s long arms to hit, stabbing forwards with his spear at the Lotharro’s stomach. The thrust connected, and Garozz took a step back as the blow forced some of the breath out of him, allowing Tio some space to spin around and build up for a hard, wide swing of his own, like Garozz had been doing up until now.
But Tio wasn't the only one taking a page out of his opponent's book. His wide swing hit nothing but air as Garozz ducked down under his staff with surprising speed, and then quite literally jumped at him. Tio had been in a few fights before now, but nothing had prepared him for an incoming full body slam in the middle of a staff fight. He let out a pained squeak as the full weight of the Lotharro crashed down upon him, flattening him to the ground and knocking the staff out of his hand.
“ENOUGH!” Teddie boomed, striding over to them. “THE MATCH IS OVER GAROZZ, YOU WIN. NOW GET OFF THE CAPTAIN BEFORE YOU CRUSH HIM.”
Garozz complied without a fuss, pushing himself back to his feet and offering Tio, who'd been pushed down to his nose into the red sand, a hand up. When his hand was initially ignored since Tio was still too dazed from the impact to do anything but stare up blankly into the sky, he instead took hold of his shoulder and pulled him to his feet.
“S’rry capt’n, ya know wha’ it’s like. Can’t be pullin’ ma punches, ya ‘ear.” Garozz mumbled sheepishly, guiding him over to the rock Grace was sitting on for a rest.
“Give him five breaks to recover, then get him back on his feet. He's still got a mile-long run waiting for him for losing.” Teddie demanded, a glint of humor shining in his eyes for a moment before he turned back to where the rest of the crew were sparring.
It was at times like this that Tio was reminded why he’d hired Teddie Wrathbone to be his first mate. Being an element soldier once upon a time had taught him not just how to discipline himself, but how to maintain discipline among others to, which was a skill sorely needed to keep the ragtag group of brigands Tio employed as his crew in line. It was the balance of power and teamwork between him and his two officers that’d been keeping the Skylance Pirates running smoothly so far: Tio led the way forwards with his ambitions and enthusiasm, Grace provided the supplies for the crew to follow him (and stopped him if it seemed like he was leading them into more trouble than they could handle), and Teddie gave anyone that tried to slack off a good kick in the backside so they didn’t fall behind. They were essentially the rider, reins and whip that drove a horse; without even one of them they’d be completely out of control.
And now more than ever Tio needed to make sure he had unquestionable control of his crew, because a plan was starting to take shape that he needed them to all be in their best shape for. Next season a ship with a very special prize would be sailing past Scalvoris waters, a ship larger and more heavily guarded than anything his crew had faced yet. His plan to capture it was ambitious to say the least; it’d taken him a season to get approval for it past Grace, and if even a single person didn’t play their part properly it could spell disaster for them all. Therefor in order to make sure everything went as planned Tio had decided to hold a number of training sessions for the rest of the season so that everybody would be fully prepared for what lay ahead.
Red sand crunched like popcorn under the feet of him and his crewmembers as they lined up across the stretch of beach, standing in their own rough estimations of how a soldier at attention stood as Teddie slowly walked in front of them, seeming more akin to a drill sergeant than a criminal. While these extra training sessions had been Tio’s idea, all affairs involving crew training were Teddie’s responsibility to lead, and he took the job so seriously that he’d refused to relinquish control of them.
It was only when he’d arrived at the beach a little while ago that Tio had realised why Teddie had been so adamant about it. The ex-soldier had total, undisputed authority when in the training ground that not even Tio could overturn; it had been a condition he’d insisted on when Tio had first hired him to join the crew, and by setting foot on the beach Tio had inadvertently put himself under his first mate's command for the duration of the session. Teddie had been looking for an opportunity to whip his captain’s physically unimposing ass into shape for a while now, and while under normal circumstances he had no authority to make his superior attend any training sessions, it was a completely different story if he came to one by himself.
“We'll start of with a nice, easy warm up: a hundred push-ups, sit-ups, and crunches!” Teddie announced. Immediately cries of protest sounded out from the crew, but were halted as the ex-soldier shot them a sharp glare. “Oh, and the last one to finish them will be doing a mile long run down the beach, so I suggest you put your backs into it. Your time starts now!”
Whatever reluctance the crew had to start evaporated the moment Teddie cracked his knuckles loud enough to be heard in Rynmere, and all at once they dropped to their knees and began doing press-ups at record speed. The only one not joining in was Grace, who sat on a rock a little while away smirking to herself and jotting down notes in her journal. Technically Teddie had the right to demand that she join in too, but that didn't mean he was stupid enough to do so. She had the power to make their voyages hell for anyone on the crew, and had proven herself more than willing to do so.
Tio forced himself to push his body up over and over at a pace he'd never thought himself capable of. He would cheat in a heartbeat if he could but he could feel Teddie’s gaze on him, counting the rises to make sure he didn't do exactly that. It wasn't long before his arms started to turn to jelly, and he shot a desperate look over to Grace.
“Help me!” He mouthed.
Grace’s smirk growing a little wider at the edges was the only reply he received before she looked back to her book.
With a snarl of frustration, Tio grit his teeth and attacked the exercises again with renewed effort, determined to power through and get it over and done with as quickly. His arms began to turn to rubber, as did his abs and legs when he turned to the sit-ups and scrunches, but after an arduous few breaks the torment was over and done with, and Tio collapsed onto the beach back first to catch his breath as the people who'd been slower than him struggled to finish.
He barely had a moment to recover before Teddie was back to shouting again, ordering them all to get back onto their feet and take a plain wooden staff from Grace. The Eidisi had been able to procure then for the day after some ‘aggressive haggling’ with one of the merchants in town, and handed them out to the wheezing crew members wordlessly as they approached, watching them all as always with eyes that seemed to silently make note of and store everything they saw.
“NOW ALL OF YOU PAIR UP AND ASSUME FIGHTING STANCES. YOU'LL EACH HAVE A PRACTICE MATCH WITH YOUR PARTNER, WITH VICTORY OBTAINED BY DISARMING THEM, PINNING THEM TO THE GROUND FOR TEN TRILLS, OR FORCING THEM TO SURRENDER. THE LOSERS WILL AGAIN BE GOING FOR A MILE-LONG RUN. NOW, BEGIN!”
By sheer bad luck Tio found himself paired with Garozz ‘the Hairy’, the ship's doctor who happened to stand at least a good foot taller than him. Garozz was a gentle soul at heart and rarely resorted to violence, but in a training match like this Tio had absolutely no doubt at all that the Lotharro would kick his ass six ways into next season.
With his bigger size and strength Garozz was able to hold the wooden staff like a longsword, and swung it at Tio’s head with perhaps just a little too much vigor for a training match (and coincidentally enough Teddie seemed to take that exactly moment to stop watching him like a hawk, the sneaky sod.) Tio ducked down to avoid it and rolled backwards as Garozz followed up with another low swing, aiming to put some distance between them. Not only did Garozz have the advantage of natural strength and size but a longer reach as well, which meant he'd have to play it smart if he wanted to win this.
It was unlikely that Garozz would attack carelessly on his own, so Tio decided to make his own opening. He stepped into Garozz’s attack range, and held his staff up to block as his opponent’s staff came hurtling towards his head. By the spirits this guy could swing! Why wasn't he on the raiding crew? He continued to block as Garozz swung wide, heavy blows down on top of him, keeping his heels dug firmly into the sand and waiting for the right moment.
And eventually an opportunity presented itself: Garozz stepped noticeably too wide as he wound up for another strike, causing him to hesitate as his balance fell askew for a moment. Seeing his chance, Tio sprang forwards so that he was too close for Garozz’s long arms to hit, stabbing forwards with his spear at the Lotharro’s stomach. The thrust connected, and Garozz took a step back as the blow forced some of the breath out of him, allowing Tio some space to spin around and build up for a hard, wide swing of his own, like Garozz had been doing up until now.
But Tio wasn't the only one taking a page out of his opponent's book. His wide swing hit nothing but air as Garozz ducked down under his staff with surprising speed, and then quite literally jumped at him. Tio had been in a few fights before now, but nothing had prepared him for an incoming full body slam in the middle of a staff fight. He let out a pained squeak as the full weight of the Lotharro crashed down upon him, flattening him to the ground and knocking the staff out of his hand.
“ENOUGH!” Teddie boomed, striding over to them. “THE MATCH IS OVER GAROZZ, YOU WIN. NOW GET OFF THE CAPTAIN BEFORE YOU CRUSH HIM.”
Garozz complied without a fuss, pushing himself back to his feet and offering Tio, who'd been pushed down to his nose into the red sand, a hand up. When his hand was initially ignored since Tio was still too dazed from the impact to do anything but stare up blankly into the sky, he instead took hold of his shoulder and pulled him to his feet.
“S’rry capt’n, ya know wha’ it’s like. Can’t be pullin’ ma punches, ya ‘ear.” Garozz mumbled sheepishly, guiding him over to the rock Grace was sitting on for a rest.
“Give him five breaks to recover, then get him back on his feet. He's still got a mile-long run waiting for him for losing.” Teddie demanded, a glint of humor shining in his eyes for a moment before he turned back to where the rest of the crew were sparring.
