Maliq's Teachings [Warrior Training B --> A / Solo]

The distinct snap of a rib breaking filled Caelus' ears at he was thrown against the oak tree.  Splinters from the protesting bark tore at his back from the force of the blow.  The air caught in his lungs and he began to choke, struggling to take a breath.

"Again!"  Maliq's voice rang out from the training ground.  He smirked as Caelus finally pulled in a gasp of air and began coughing.  "That was better this time, but still too late.  You must anticipate when an opponent will use Magoi Manipulation against you, and where they will strike.  Only then will you be able to respond correctly with your own defense.  Now get up, we still have a long day ahead of us!"  The man yelling at Caelus was a Yambala tribesman named Maliq.  Maliq was a true bear of a man, standing a head-and-a-half taller than Caelus, and almost twice as wide.  His frame was practically all toned muscle, but contrasted with a head of long yellow-blonde hair that stayed in a loose ponytail over his shoulder.  He spoke in a deep bass voice, that was simultaneously hearty and intimidating.  He was the kind of man that even other men had to admit was handsome.

Caelus grunted and stood, pulling his new spear, Dawnbringer, off his back.  With a twirl he conjured the spearhead and stabbed his own chest, letting the healing magic of the spear repair his injuries almost immediately.  His rib mended and the splinters found their way out of his back to fall to the ground.  Caelus smiled.  The purchase of the spear was turning out to be a godsend.  He didn't know what he would do without it, and questioned how he did so beforehand.  Of course, healing magic was no substitute for rest and recuperation, but the spear allowed him to accelerate his training with the Yambala tribe.  Their methods were brutal but effective, relying on pain to teach lessons that words could not.  Normally, one would have to wait for old injuries to heal before continuing training, a process of training, breaking, resting, repeating, that could take over a year for even the most resilient student.  But Dawnbringer allowed Caelus to jump right back into the fight.  By the Yambala's own estimates, he could finish his training in just over three months.

He had finished two months already, and was excited with his progress.  The entire first month was spent reinforcing the basics of infusing magoi.  It helped to expand the amount he could call up at once and hold on to.  While the second month was spent pushing his body to the absolute limit, forcing him to expend a large amount of magoi before beginning a grueling exercise regimen.  This helped to increase his maximum magoi potential, by effectively forcing his body to produce more magoi.

But now he "belonged to Maliq", his words.  Maliq was one of their best fighters, and had jumped at the chance to "test the outsider", again, his words.  Only two weeks into their training, and Caelus hadn't even landed a blow on Maliq for the entire first week, and still had not won a single round of their matches together.  It was truly an eye opening experience for Caelus.  While his name was known throughout Reimano as one of the gladiatorial greats, just a little ways north of the city he was less than a nobody.  That people existed outside of his knowledge with whom there was that much of a skill gap between them pushed him to take his training more seriously than ever before.

It should be noted however, that up until recently all of his training had been unarmed.  Caelus had kept Dawnbringer close by to heal his wounds in a pinch, but was not allowed to use it or any of his other equipment to fight.  Now his training was separated into unarmed combat in the mornings and with weapons in the evenings.  When he held Valkyrie in his hands he was much more at home in the fights, and Maliq himself stated that Caelus was an excellent swordsman and lancer.

With no magoi involved, Caelus would likely come away the victor in their evening bouts more than half the time.  But fighting while managing Magoi Manipulation was strange to him, forcing him to split his focus between the battle in front of him, and the battle of wits that Maliq employed while fighting.  The Yambalan would change up his strategy on the fly, switching which strikes would use magoi and which would not.  Caelus discovered that the only surefire ways to deal with Maliq's attacks was to parry or dodge everything thrown at him, or block with his own magoi.  It was slow going at first, with Caelus suffering many brutal injuries caused by his mistakes.  But today, he was closer than ever to getting it just right.

Caelus took up his fighting stance again, and brought Valkyrie to bear in front of him.  He was slowly learning to see the subtle fluctuations in the body that were proof of magoi being used.  And the dual nature of the fights were beginning to streamline.  He was getting better.

He charged in for a sweeping attack, that he knew Maliq would easily jump over.  As he did, Caelus rotated his whole body to bring his blade back up in a rising strike infused with magoi.  Maliq parried it to his right with ease, using the momentum to push him away from Caelus to land safely.  But Caelus was ready for this, pulling Valkyrie back in and thrusting forward for where Maliq was just about to land.  He wouldn't need Magoi Manipulation for this strike, preferring to save it for later in the fight.  To his utter surprise, Maliq performed a static block with the flat of his blade, something that Caelus had learned early on could get you killed in a Magoi Manipulation fight.  There was a beat, then Caelus began to feel the familiar sensation of Magoi running throughout his body, tearing it to shreds.  He vomited blood, and dropped to the ground in a heap.

When Caelus awoke, he was in a bed in a kind of medical tent like one might see on a battlefield.  Except he was the only patient.  Maliq sat nearby and smiled at him.  "You've come to.  Good.  Sorry to do this to you as soon as you wake up, but maybe you can explain what i did in our fight?"

Caelus tried to sit up, but Maliq put his hand on Caelus' chest to stop him, shaking his head.  Caelus relaxed back down and began to think of the last moments of their fight.

"You saw that i wasn't using magoi..."  Caelus started, piecing together his hazy memories.  "And then you blocked my thrust.  But at the last second you used Magoi Manipulation on your own blade.  So instead of blocking, you were actually attacking."  He put his hand over his eyes and wiped down.  It was a brilliant strategy, and one that he likely wouldn't have thought of on his own.  There were no rules that stated magoi could not travel from a block into a blow, you just had to think about it in a different way.  A kind of retributive block.

The revelation changed a lot about his strategy in fights to come.  Once he was off of bed-rest, Caelus dove into his training with renewed vigor.  Before he knew it, their training sessions were ending with neither one of them landing a solid hit, whether it be with blade or magoi.  Caelus was learning not just the foundations of proper Magoi Manipulation combat, but also how to control the flow of a fight.  This was partially because of Maliq's skill as a teacher.  He allowed Caelus to push him when he made impressive decisions, but harshly punished any foolish mistakes.  Caelus made the greatest strides in his progress in the last weeks of his training because of this, and finally it came time for Maliq to truly test how far Caelus had come.

Caelus stood opposite Maliq on their usual training ground.  He was allowed to rest the entire day before in preparation for this test, true combat versus his teacher, in which death for either side was a very real possibility.  Of course, there were medics standing by, and Caelus had decided to leave Dawnbringer in their hands so that any near-mortal wound could be healed quickly.  In his right hand he held Valkyrie, and on his left arm was strapped his shield, Hurricane's Crest.

Maliq stood with only his shortsword (although it was sized for him, and could qualify as a longsword in anyone else's hands) and an open hand.  His chest was bare, showing off his various scars, of which not a single one touched his back; it was a true testament to his prowess as a fighter.

The fight would end either when one of them surrendered to the other, or when a judge decided to stop the fight.  Their match would be held in private, away from prying eyes that might otherwise sway the fighters actions.

There was no bell or call to start the fight, instead once both of them had stated their readiness they could begin at any time.

It was the smallest shift in Maliq's weight that prompted Caelus to begin, and both fighters clashed swords in the center of the field.  His strategy was simple, throw off Maliq by feinting mistakes that could otherwise be easily punished, and counter with surgical precision.  This would prove to be easier said than done, as Maliq was fond of these tactics as well.  Part of his teaching style revolved around luring students into a false sense of security before striking them down.  Any mistake on Caelus' part could not only lose him the fight, but prove fatal.

Caelus swung Valkyrie in a wide arc, infusing magoi so as to clash with the block that Maliq responded with.  Maliq then reached forward with his open hand to try and grab Caelus by the sword arm, but had to retreat from the Mirror's Edge strike that followed the initial.  Caelus pushed his advantage, switching to his Hoplite Stance and rushing forward with Valkyrie held low and in front.  Maliq dodged to Caelus' right side, away from his blade, and struck out with a lightning quick three slash combo, all wrapped in magoi.  Caelus infused his shield to counter the magoi, activating the grounding parry of the Hoplite Stance to drive Maliq's blade into the ground and interrupt his slashes.  Because of their positioning, Caelus was unable to followup with his Crippling Riposte like he had planned, instead launching himself into the air up and over Maliq, using a quick burst of air from Hurricane's Crest to further propel him.  Before he could land safely, Maliq swept his legs and caused him to have to roll backwards, which in turn allowed Maliq to pull his blade from the ground, resetting the fight.

Maliq struck first this time, with a powerful, magoi infused, downward slash that Caelus deflected to the left with the parry from his Hoplite Stance.  This was followed immediately by a full force palm strike that Caelus had to Quickstep backwards to avoid.  Caelus feigned a stumble, which prompted a magoi infused thrust from Maliq using his already built momentum.  Caelus sprung forward off his back foot, using Brush Past to parry the thrust, and following up with the powerful vacuum slice of Cross Counter.  Maliq performed a hasty magoi infused block with his sword, causing it to shatter but otherwise avoiding serious harm.  Maliq attempted to reposition by using an elbow strike to drive Caelus away, but in doing so fell into Caelus' true trap.  Caelus raised his shield to block, and infused it with Magoi.  At such close quarters, and at such high speed, there was no time for Maliq to realize his mistake.  His elbow struck Caelus' shield, allowing the destructive magoi to rip through his body.  There was a beat, and then Maliq fell to one knee.

The judge called the match in Caelus' favor, and the medical team rushed in to help.  Caelus took his Dawnbringer spear from the sidelines and used it to heal the damage he had done to his teacher.  Maliq allowed himself to fall into a sitting position, and grinned up at Caelus.

"Now that was excellent.  You allowed me to think your finisher had failed, but it was the real setup.  Bravo.  You pass."  Maliq held out his hand and Caelus shook it.

Caelus would end up staying a few more weeks in the camp, learning other tricks and techniques, but without the rigors of the proper training.  It was a very stressful, but enjoyable four months, that Caelus would come to treasure.

~WC: 2161/2000~