The First Student: Part II

As Koren did what was asked for them, James got a drink of water for himself, and went through a couple stretches. Koren quickly returned with the two mid sticks. James took one from them and got into a relaxed stance. "Here, come next to me and try to match what I do. You want to stand like this most times. You can see that this looks pretty normal, just as if you're standing around minding your own business. A number of people out there will tell you that you need your feet in a certain place, at a certain angle. And yes, that's useful, and looks pretty. And yes, it works for duels. But I'm not teaching people how to win a duel. There are no rules when someone comes at you with the intent to do you harm, actual harm. Your one job at that point is to survive. And if you can live another day, then you've been successful. Someone comes at you, you're not going to have the time to get into some fancy stance. You're going to have seconds to react, maybe less. And the less you have to think about the better. Understand?"
 
Koren nodded their head with a vigorous yes. "Okay, so just stand however is most comfortable for you." James walks around them, looking at their form, seeing how their muscles tense or relax. "Drop your shoulders, you'll tire yourself out fast and get a nasty headache if you keep them scrunched up like that." Having become more civilized since being stranded, James walks back around in front of them. "Some of what I'm trying to show you will be easier if I can physically correct you or move you. Do you mind if I put hands on you?" They look confused, as if no one had ever asked them that before, because no one had. Yet here was this human, this seemingly huge human that could snap them in two if they wanted, and could probably pick them up and throw them across the entirely of the hall, and they're asking permission to touch them.
 
"Ye...yes. Yes Maestro." Their voice was unsteady, puzzled, but also profoundly grateful at the simple act.
 
"Okay then, here, let me show you." James slid the stick through his belt and walked behind them again. "You've lived so long being ready to jump that you don't know how to relax. I get it. Happens to the best of us. Now," James puts his hands on their shoulders and presses down lightly, "those muscles you feel straining against what I'm doing, those are the ones you have to make relax. Take your time, you probably haven't had to feel just one muscle before, or just one part of your body. Just breathe, listen to what I'm saying, and feel where I'm touching." James waited for Koren to breathe steadily, and nod before continuing. James pushed in through their clothes and against their fur, running fingers along the areas with the most tension. "There, do you feel that? Like rock that is, but it's not supposed to be. Try to focus on just the areas I'm touching, feel your body, feels your muscles, breathe and tell them to relax. Don't rush it, we've got all day." Slowly they started to relax, the muscles going slack, until both of their shoulders drop.
 
"That feels strange, almost unnatural." Koren stated with a soft, and confused voice.
 
"That's because you've been doing your best to put your shoulders up to your ears for so long that your body's grown used to it. And you're not going to stop it with just one time of this. You'll have to keep doing it, forcing yourself to pay attention, check in, and drop them until one day, they'll be properly relaxed all the time." James responded with a caring, and understanding tone for having done the same. Removing his hands from Koren's shoulders, he walks back in front of them, drawing his stick. "Now, here's the dirty little trick that they do their best to hide in those fancy dueling schools. No matter the weapon, almost all the basic moves are the same. Now there's some specialized ones that you can do with certain weapons, or some things you probably shouldn't do, like attempting to stab someone with a hammer. But in almost all circumstances, a cut is a cut, a thrust is a thrust and a strike is a strike." James stopped for a second and looks at them. "Have you ever received weapons training before? Have you ever used one?"
 
Koren's head dropped slightly. "No. No one wanted me to have something on me in case I decided to steal something, or I didn't have enough money to buy one. And my claws have done a good amount of work so far." That sad tone returning to their voice.
 
James smiles. "That's okay, it means you don't have a lot of bad habits the need to be worked out of ya." Koren perks up at the bright tone, and manages a small smile. "Okay, let me show you what I mean about basic techniques." James points to one of the sailcloth wrapped columns and walks within striking distance of it. "Now watch." Treating the stick like a saber, James makes a simple cross body cut from shoulder to hip. He then resets and does the same but straight across the stomach. His third strike rises from hip to shoulder. His forth comes straight down from the head with the "point" ending in the chest. "All of those, just simple cuts, nothing fancy. Now let me show you some of the thing I've seen." Without moving his feet James begins a very fancy and pretty flourish repeating all the same cuts in the same order, with a continuous flow of the stick, stopping once again with the point in the chest. "Same cuts, same basic techniques, just a few more things thrown in. You learn the basics, get those under your skin so you know them well, and then you can start adding style to them, combining and chaining things together until it's all a smooth flow. And don't worry, we will work on footwork, but I don't want to overload you too much the first day." James chuckles, and despite trying not to, Koren follows suit.
 
"Okay come here and stand in front of the target, I'll be next to you." As they move over, James holds his stick out. "Now the one thing I will say is grip is important. You don't want it to be too tight, or too loose. Also where and how you hold each weapon will differ depending on the balance, but for right now, hold yours like I'm holding mine, but don't try to choke the life out of it. Just let it set comfortably in your hand. Again, it'll take a while to get used to but you'll catch on." He thinks back to all the time in the beginning when he first held a sword, and how quickly his arm would tire because of trying to kill it by choking it. Touching Koren's hand and helping them to adjust their grip, James eventually looks satisfied. "Okay, first cut, bring the stick back to your left shoulder, you want it slightly angled. That's it. Okay, now just slowly swing it forward, you want the tip to drag across the target from shoulder to hip. Just imagine someone standing there, or just something that looks...well kinda like me. And slowly, that's it...good!" He smiles as Koren continues. "Okay, now bring it back to your side, and cut across the belly. That's it. Now back to the side again, but held at a downwards angle, now up from hip to shoulder. Very nice. And finally bring it up over your head, now flick it out and straight down. Very good Koren."
 
They beam at the praise. "Thank you Maestro."
 
"Now, just do each of those ten-thousand times and you'll be just about ready." James says in a matter of fact tone that causes Koren to blanche.
 
"Te...Ten-thousand...each?!"
 
"Oh don't worry. You'll reach that number faster than you know." He says in, what he hopes is a reassuring tone. "It may seem like an insurmountable number, but like all things, diligence and practice will bring it closer, faster than you can imagine. Okay, here's what you're going to do. Until I say stop, you're going to do those four cuts. Don't get fast, this isn't a speed contest. Focus on the target, and work to make the tip of your "sword" go exactly where you want it. You can do them in any order you want, but for right now, we're only doing those four, got it?"
 
"Yes Maestro." Koren says, staring at the canvas, focusing hard on it.
 
James laughs soft enough that they can't hear him. "Okay then, begin." For the next half hour the sound of a slow drag of wood against canvas can be heard. James picks up a steel, one handed practice blade, and after a quick bit of warm up's, begins running through training forms. After half an hour, James having worked up a good sweat turns toward Koren, watching them. Their technique has gotten sloppy and he can see their frustration mounting as their fatigued muscles just don't want to do what they're telling them. "Hold." Koren's arm drops like a lead weight.
 
"I'm sorry, I got bad there and I couldn't make it better." Frustration, and personal bitterness oozed out of their tone.
 
"Koren, it's fine, you did well. This is your first time picking up and using anything like a blade. Now, do you know what happened?" He tries for a consoling, understanding tone.
 
"No! My arm just stopped doing what I told it to do and I couldn't fix it."
 
"Our muscles can only go for so long before they give out. Oh you can push them far beyond their limit, but like you saw, the technique starts to suffer. It's fine, part of this was to get you doing the techniques." He turns Koren toward him and puts his hands on their shoulders. "The other part was for you to feel what's it's like when your muscles tire out. The rest of you can feel absolutely fine and ready to run down the docks all day and night. But your arm just can't do anymore. You'll be able to go longer as you train. We've just got to get your muscles used to it, and keep pushing them further. Don't worry, you did quite well." He says with his signature smile and tone.
 
Koren looks up at him and quietly says "Thank you, Maestro." their tone speaking to the truth of their words.
 
"Okay Koren, get some more water in you, and hand that stick here. We'll meet up again tomorrow, and I'll work to meet up with you a bit every day to work with you on this. Now I also need to go adventuring some times as I've got to keep myself fed as well. And when I'm away, you're welcome to come in here and practice. But for now, make sure you don't let your arm rest for too long, but don't work it hard either. You don't want it going stiff on you. Just make sure you're moving it a bit every now and then, maybe stretch it." He states while putting the sticks back up along with his blade.
 
"Koren...thank you for telling me all of that. I know reliving memories like that can't be easy. But I don't think you're cursed, just dealt a bad hand." James turns toward them as they finish drinking a cup of water. "And I'm looking forward to seeing just how much of an amazing swordsperson you are."
 
Their eyes tear up, once again hearing words of encouragement, belief in them. But also remembering what's happened every other time someone has shown them faith. "Thank you Maestro. I don't know if I deserve it, but thank you." Their words just loud enough for James to hear them.
 
"Alright, I'm sure you have other duties to attend to. I'll see you tomorrow, bright and early!"
 
"Yes Maestro!" Their face a mass of conflicting emotions, but joy and excitement is still on the top, they walk out, one shoulder still trying to meet their ears, but their sword arm shoulder is completely sagged. They walk out with a step much lighter than they came in with, and James's smile follows them out.
 
Sitting down at the benches and using a repurposed crate as a writing desk, James pulls out a sheet of paper and a pen.
 
"Dear Mama,
You are not going to believe what happened today, and who just walked into my life. Let me tell you about them. Their name is Koren..."