4th of Cylus
Arc 720
Arc 720
"Well," Vega said with a grin, "lets get you to the point where you can nock, draw, an' not put yer own eye out, or rip yer own fingers off." She looked at the two of them and then motioned. "Here's the thing. A bow, to be any good at all, it needs to be made for you an' your strength. This one's mine, an' it's made for me. It takes into account my strength, an' allows me to maximise that." Her bow was, in fairness, lovely. "It's like a sword, or a knife, or even a fan," she said with a smile to Genna, "If it's made for you, it's gonna be a sigh' easier to do somethin' with it. Because it fits your hand. But. An' this is important," she handed her bow to first Kas, and then Genna. "Pull it back. Jus' hold it up an' pull it back." It was weighted for her, and that meant that it was
more than difficult
for most people. Then, she handed them a bow from the practice range. Checked it first and then handed it. "Now that one," she said. This one had barely any weight in the pull at all, a child could pull it. "It's like a sword. If you've not got the strength to wield a claymore two-handed, I don't care how big it is, you ain't hittin' anyone or - at best - you're slow like treacle an' the shakin' in your arms from the exertion means that your accuracy's gone to the Beneath." She watched to make sure that they both got it. "Whereas, with that second one? Well, yeah, you can pull it back an' fire it, but it's like turnin' up to a sword fight with a twig. It's not gonna work." So, that done and explained, she showed them where the place was in these bows to adjust for draw strength. "See there, top an' bottom. It feels like a waste o'time, if you pick up a bow an' can fire it, but it's not. Those trills will make the difference between you hittin' somethin' or not. An' if you do hit it?" she shrugged, "It might just make the difference between you hurtin' them or not." She gestured to the pair of them. "Find a bow that feels about righ' an' adjust it a bit. We're not gonna get into a good place as far as customisin' it for you is concerned, but lets maximise it. An', if you've got them, wear gloves. There's strain on the backs of your fingers, like you wouldn't believe."
Once they'd done that, she had a look and nodded. "Righ'. The temptation's gonna be to dig in. Don't. Light on yer feet, an' flexible in yer movements. It's fine bein' stood still so long as the enemy only run in straight lines" Which would be great if they ever did. "Unlike blade-work, keep your weight as static as you can, but don't lock. An' the trick, I've found, is to breathe. Cos when you do, your chest moves, so the temptation will be not to. Breathe in as you draw, an' out as you release. You'll be fine."
Moving her hand forward, she showed them, then, how to hold an arrow. "Make sure that you're not gettin' your fingers ripped off when you release, hold it like this." That said, and if they had no questions, she pointed to the target. "You got a target each. Get on with it. I'll watch you for a couple o' shots, then I'll get back to my own practice, unless you've got more questions."
Which was, of course, exactly what she would do - but she would make sure that they were confident in what they were doing first - and she'd check their stance and grip and things, helping them individually. Always with a brash voice, always with a complete lack of regard for anyone's feelings - if it was rubbish, she'd say so and tell them why. But her hands were gentle and she wouldn't mind no matter how many times they had to try.