4 Saun 722 (self note)
Without any preamble, training started the following day. Upon entering the dojo, students were presented with a roster of three-person groups with whom they could practice their new technique. After defending themselves against their teammates, each member had to quickly swap out so that the next person could start the cycle.
After giving it some thought, Illuvia realized that the teacher’s drawings of what they were supposed to do were very short and crude, which was to be expected. Even though the teacher was calm and thoughtful, it's likely that she hadn't needed to refine her art skills much over the years.
After a thorough search of the space, Illuvia was squeezed between two stone-faced women who had their practice swords raised. She was eager, but she had to force herself to relax her tense muscles even though she didn't feel nervous or uneasy.
Illuvia shifted uncomfortably as the surrounding teams started their practice, falling into the raised knee seated stance that the teacher-instructor had demonstrated yesterday. The person who was directly in front of her, a silver-haired woman with a vulpine expression on her face, repositioned her fingers on the sleek wooden handle. The other girl moved almost silently behind her, and Illuvia realized that if she couldn't time her second strike to defend herself properly, her timing would suffer.
"Ready?” she asked with her stunning grin.
With a bitter scowl and a swallow, Illuvia gritted her teeth and slowly nodded her head. When Illuvia realized she was going to attack, her response was to cock her head kindly to one side before revealing her teeth in what should have been a smile but turned into something more feral.
The silver-haired girl surprised Illuvia with her strength and speed, and she realized in that one shimmering moment of understanding that she would not have been able to draw her practice sword quickly enough if the technique had required more than just striking with the hilt. As it happened, the attractive attacker's weapon hand was struck by the practice weapon's hilt, causing her to yell as her weapon clanked on the wooden floor.
Illuvia spun around without pausing, remembering how deftly the instructor had used the same maneuver to protect herself from two assailants. She also completely removed her practice sword from her sheathe during this maneuver. Before she could fully comprehend what had happened, her rear attacker struck her in the face. For a split second, her racing thoughts abruptly stopped, allowing her instincts to take control. With a grunt of effort, Illuvia struck in an arch, sending the second girl toppling off balance to her right as her practice sword's roughly polished edge caught the weight of her attack and swept it to the side.
Feeling proud of herself for having succeeded, Illuvia got up and put her practice sword back. A recognizable voice said, "Getting better I see… but you’re still leaving yourself open towards the end." The teacher spoke for a while longer before Illuvia turned to face her, saying, "thank you.” Illuvia growled in frustration before she could stop herself, her previous sense of fulfillment fading under the weight of the teacher's feedback.
They took a break for lunch as the teacher had something unexpected come up – it would be a while before a replacement would arrive. Nonetheless, the students came back prepared for more training. However, when Illuvia arrived, she saw that a recognizable-looking brute with disheveled hair and an unattractive square nose was among the group.
"Ah, are you with this group?" a firm voice in the front of the room asked. Illuvia turned to see a strong-built man staring at her sternly while assuming an openly challenging stance and folded arms; this man had to be the replacement teacher.
"Yes." Illuvia gave a calm response in return.
A few moments later, her words echoed in the air before the sour man nodded curtly and motioned for her to join the group, not bothering to ask any more questions about her. If Illuvia had been that kind of person, she would have grinned at the air of authority, dominance, and simplicity this Teacher exuded around his pupils.
This man appeared to be a seasoned fighter, in contrast to the teacher who appeared more frivolous and scholarly. With that came a fortitude that was forged within a woman's spirit; it was not something that could be acquired by merely learning how to use a blade. The instructor yelled, "Pair off in twos and work on your techniques!" and there was not a peep of complaining or idle chatter. Just the tapping of feet as each person took their place to start.
The instructor approached Illuvia, who was confused and stayed where she had joined the group of students earlier. As he got closer, Illuvia could see more details of the instructor's face. The man was distinguished by an obscene scar that began close to his ear, extended across his thin cheek, and finally tapered out on the other side of his mouth.
Illuvia tensed up in indignation at the way she was looked at, but the large man, who was extraordinarily tall and broad, sank into a stance that Illuvia would not have recognized immediately if she hadn't been trained. The instructor said, "HA!” before hurriedly shoving his practice sword into the empty space in front of him.
The Instructor, whose name Illuvia had yet to learn, sheathed his practice sword back and nodded thoughtfully and patiently to Illuvia, saying, "Now you try."
Illuvia grinned, jogged over to the closest practice sword rack, grabbed one, came back to the man, and bowed her head respectfully. It seemed to be demanded by the man's presence. With her left hand stabilizing the practice sword's body to ensure a smooth draw from her sheath, Illuvia leaned forward into a bowed position, allowing her knees to absorb some of the weight from her stance. She then placed her right hand on the practice sword's hilt. To give herself a full range of motion, Illuvia let her muscles lag a little. Then, keeping her arm straight and parallel to what she had seen in the demonstration, she tore the practice sword from her sheath and thrust its tip forward, just as she had seen the Instructor do.
"Hold!" the instructor yelled, and Illuvia remained as rigid as she could while the man circled around her, examining every aspect of her posture.
Illuvia's limbs trembled as she tried to keep her form as soon as sweat matted her hair to her forehead. At last, the man moaned and instructed Illuvia to put away her practice sword, to which the pupil dutifully complied. "Welcome to my class. You will refer to me as Astraen. I will be teaching this class for the foreseeable future since your previous instructor had to tend to important business” When Illuvia nodded, Astraen's eyebrow raised inquisitively.
"I got it... Astraen”
Astraen saw Illuvia's quick progression throughout the training session for what it was, and the stern elder motioned for one of his disciples wearing black clothing to approach her. It was the same ugly brute that she had seen when she first entered and had viciously attacked her in class on the first day. It seemed from that demonstration that he possessed a talent for fighting. The bully, who was significantly heavier and taller than Illuvia, had a menacing appearance as he scowled at Illuvia, but Astraen clucked his teeth once, making the hateful expression vanish.
"I have no time for small-scale conflicts. When you want a rival, you fight honorably.”
Illuvia nodded in agreement and watched as the other girl mimicked her movements. The instructor proceeded to teach the next form for the practice that day, "This is a basic maneuver when dealing with an approaching opponent," and the students followed suit, believing his words to be law. Simple and direct. The elder showed Illuvia and the others how to draw and cut with minimal explanation, and everyone else took a break from their rigorous practice to watch as well. Astraen gave two demonstrations before calling for everyone to start practicing after the second one, when he shouted in a deep voice that caused Illuvia's chest to vibrate.
Astraen was observing the bully thoughtfully, so Illuvia took a moment to decide on her position. Her knees bent, her hands hovering over her practice sword, ready to draw quickly, and her weight moved forward. Her gaze stayed fixed on her opponent, watching carefully as he moved the practice sword in his sheath with ease before assuming a stance of his own. With a quick draw and the ease of his large build, he was able to bring the practice sword from his sheath with a graceful arch and then lightly strike Illuvia on the shoulder.
The practice sword was withdrawn before Astraen could reprimand the other boy, but for a brief uncomfortable moment, the tip hung there as a declaration of spite. Illuvia remained silent. Whether she had turned the man-child into an enemy didn't really matter to her because in her mind, skill would always determine who emerged on top in any given conflict.
Illuvia fiddled with the practice sword's hilt at her waist, using her weapon hand to fine-tune her grip, while her bare right foot crept toward the man on the chilly, polished dojo floor. By reducing the distance between her and her opponent, the maneuver would increase the effectiveness of the strike. Silently, Illuvia made contact. Her arm passed through the middle of her body, the tip of her practice sword swishing through the air before coming to a sudden stop before making contact with the man’s black gi. The practice sword flashed from her sheath in a blaze of ebony-oak colors. The bully’s expression soured as the motion's velocity caused Illuvia's self-imposed arch-nemesis's stringy hair to dance a little.
Astraen looked at her and the bully together and sighed. “Alright, that’s enough for today.”
