Date: 30th of Ymiden, Arc 720
Weapons: None
Status: Steady
Weapons: None
Armor: None
No Current Magical Effects
The idea had been bubbling in Prae's mind ever since his meeting with Balthazar, where the martial artists had taught him the full four forms of his fighting style.
While they had been traveling, Prae had never found a good time to experiment with the forms, and the first few trials they'd spent here had been hectic, to say the least. But now, it seemed there was a lull in the action, and Prae wanted to see if he could properly get to know these forms as well as he did the elements that inspired them.
First, he decided, a refresher. Fighting in dreams was all well and good, but Prae was a firm believer in building up muscle memory.
In his explorations of the fort, Prae had found an outdoor training space apart enough from the courtyard that he felt he was not likely to be interrupted. He knelt there now, taking a few moments before he began training to center himself, while in a corner of the courtyard, Sneabru watched, sharpening his daggers as he did.
It had been around this time last arc, Prae recalled, that Marken had first shown him the benefits of meditation, and it had proven to be an invaluable skill ever since. In the heat of battle, during the long, dull stretches that inevitably came with traveling long distances very fast, and of course, during training.
Prae took in a deep breath, and held it in his lungs for a moment. He had learned to slip into calm without such an action, but it still helped quite a bit, especially when there was no urgency to the situation. He let it out, feeling the rush of air leave his lungs, feeling the shifting of his weight on packed, welcoming dirt, the looseness of his shoulders, the tension in his thighs.
Once he felt adequately centered, Prae rose, and shifted into a Solum stance; feet planted wider than his shoulders, flat against the ground with his weight evenly distributed along the soles to keep him firmly rooted and impossible to move by force. Knees slightly bent, spine straight, arms near his chest where they were well placed to block any attack that might be incoming.
Taking a step forwards, Prae jabbed at the air, feeling the movement shift his balance, and swaying back to realign himself. Solum's effectiveness relied on the fighter being sturdily rooted with their weight directly above their feet, an immovable boulder in the path of any foe that wished to pass. But its attacks were predominantly punches, and Prae had learned long ago that a proper punch needed some swivel to it, ribs and hips twisting to turn it into something truly devastating.
The emphasis on weight and balance meant that normally, any punching movement would have to rotate around the spine, leaving the fighter with a very clearly defined range of movement that a clever enemy could take advantage of.
Normally. There was a reason that Prae had gravitated towards this style, despite not being kin to Earth.
Balthazar, as far as Prae could determine, made up for the stiffness of the upper body with quick, elegant footwork, bringing him towards and around the enemy without ever shifting his balance away from his own center. Prae wasn't at that level yet, his steps larger and slower—fighting shoulder to shoulder with other ithecal did not leave much room for fancy footwork, but he had one advantage that Balthazar did not, currently wrapped around his waist.
Any ithecal knew how to use their tail for balance while walking; Prae had learned how to use his unnaturally long tail to balance while fighting. By using it as a counterweight, Prae had found that his range of effective motion in a Solum stance was quite a bit wider than Balthazar's.
Honestly, how humans functioned without tails was beyond Prae.
Prae reset his stance, then punched the air again, this time experimenting with his range while using his tail as a counterbalance, trying to carve into his mind just how far he could reach and still stay firmly rooted. Once he felt that he had a good grasp on his own limits, he imagined a punch coming towards him, and raised his arm in a block, his tail coming down to brace him against the ground.
This, Prae had found, was the most stable position he could settle into, and made Solum into an incredibly effective fighting style for him. But stability wasn't the only thing that mattered. Just as important was the timing of attacks; the most ideal fight using Solum was one where the martial artist did nothing but defend until their opponent slipped up, before landing a single, critical punch that would end the fight right there.
This was the area where Praetorum had the most trouble. His style of combat had always been relentless offense, relying on his defensive instincts and equipment to protect him while he overwhelmed his opponent. Solum, on the other hand, demanded that he make defense his weapon, only attacking when his opponent was weak or off centre.
Shifting from foot to foot to test his balance, Prae mimed a few open hand parries with each hand, and then pulled his arms up into a block. Defense was difficult to practice without a partner, but Prae went through all the maneuvers anyways, refreshing his memory of each.
While they had been traveling, Prae had never found a good time to experiment with the forms, and the first few trials they'd spent here had been hectic, to say the least. But now, it seemed there was a lull in the action, and Prae wanted to see if he could properly get to know these forms as well as he did the elements that inspired them.
First, he decided, a refresher. Fighting in dreams was all well and good, but Prae was a firm believer in building up muscle memory.
In his explorations of the fort, Prae had found an outdoor training space apart enough from the courtyard that he felt he was not likely to be interrupted. He knelt there now, taking a few moments before he began training to center himself, while in a corner of the courtyard, Sneabru watched, sharpening his daggers as he did.
It had been around this time last arc, Prae recalled, that Marken had first shown him the benefits of meditation, and it had proven to be an invaluable skill ever since. In the heat of battle, during the long, dull stretches that inevitably came with traveling long distances very fast, and of course, during training.
Prae took in a deep breath, and held it in his lungs for a moment. He had learned to slip into calm without such an action, but it still helped quite a bit, especially when there was no urgency to the situation. He let it out, feeling the rush of air leave his lungs, feeling the shifting of his weight on packed, welcoming dirt, the looseness of his shoulders, the tension in his thighs.
Once he felt adequately centered, Prae rose, and shifted into a Solum stance; feet planted wider than his shoulders, flat against the ground with his weight evenly distributed along the soles to keep him firmly rooted and impossible to move by force. Knees slightly bent, spine straight, arms near his chest where they were well placed to block any attack that might be incoming.
Taking a step forwards, Prae jabbed at the air, feeling the movement shift his balance, and swaying back to realign himself. Solum's effectiveness relied on the fighter being sturdily rooted with their weight directly above their feet, an immovable boulder in the path of any foe that wished to pass. But its attacks were predominantly punches, and Prae had learned long ago that a proper punch needed some swivel to it, ribs and hips twisting to turn it into something truly devastating.
The emphasis on weight and balance meant that normally, any punching movement would have to rotate around the spine, leaving the fighter with a very clearly defined range of movement that a clever enemy could take advantage of.
Normally. There was a reason that Prae had gravitated towards this style, despite not being kin to Earth.
Balthazar, as far as Prae could determine, made up for the stiffness of the upper body with quick, elegant footwork, bringing him towards and around the enemy without ever shifting his balance away from his own center. Prae wasn't at that level yet, his steps larger and slower—fighting shoulder to shoulder with other ithecal did not leave much room for fancy footwork, but he had one advantage that Balthazar did not, currently wrapped around his waist.
Any ithecal knew how to use their tail for balance while walking; Prae had learned how to use his unnaturally long tail to balance while fighting. By using it as a counterweight, Prae had found that his range of effective motion in a Solum stance was quite a bit wider than Balthazar's.
Honestly, how humans functioned without tails was beyond Prae.
Prae reset his stance, then punched the air again, this time experimenting with his range while using his tail as a counterbalance, trying to carve into his mind just how far he could reach and still stay firmly rooted. Once he felt that he had a good grasp on his own limits, he imagined a punch coming towards him, and raised his arm in a block, his tail coming down to brace him against the ground.
This, Prae had found, was the most stable position he could settle into, and made Solum into an incredibly effective fighting style for him. But stability wasn't the only thing that mattered. Just as important was the timing of attacks; the most ideal fight using Solum was one where the martial artist did nothing but defend until their opponent slipped up, before landing a single, critical punch that would end the fight right there.
This was the area where Praetorum had the most trouble. His style of combat had always been relentless offense, relying on his defensive instincts and equipment to protect him while he overwhelmed his opponent. Solum, on the other hand, demanded that he make defense his weapon, only attacking when his opponent was weak or off centre.
Shifting from foot to foot to test his balance, Prae mimed a few open hand parries with each hand, and then pulled his arms up into a block. Defense was difficult to practice without a partner, but Prae went through all the maneuvers anyways, refreshing his memory of each.
