The Art of War

Bramble's quip about not making Briar get up when he did brought an amused and slightly horrified grimace from the Aegis. His Queen was scary enough when she was mad at him, he didn't dare tempt the fates by trying to rouse her before dawn. When presented with her options, Bramble chose a lesson on agility and footwork. Grinning a beaming smile to his child, Artorias nodded his head and assumed his battle-ready stance across from her. "All right, agility it is! We'll start with basic footwork, then move into some techniques for dodging and maneuvering when in combat." Art stretched to limber up his muscles, have a tousle of his thick coat, then dropped down to level his body out, paws spread shoulder-length apart and legs bent and muscles tensed, ready to move like a viper coiled and ready to strike. He waited for Bramble to get herself ready and in position too before he began the lesson.

"No doubt Mercury has already taught you all about stable fighting stances and how vital they are to maintain during battle. No matter how strong you are, having poor balance or clumsy footing can be the key difference between achieving victory and suffering defeat." Artorias demonstrated how he could shift his body weight side to side, shimmying as it looked like he might leap either direction to his side at a moment's notice. "Knowing where to place and position your paws as well as how to move your legs and body is as important to combat as knowing how and where to strike your foe. Your movements are the only thing between you and getting hit, after all. Now, try to do as I do..." Artorias demonstrated how he swiftly sidestepped, his paws nimbly crossing back and forth over one another as he strafed back and forth in front of Bramble without turning his body or breaking his attention from her. Then he kicked it up a notch, hopping back and forth in a flurry of movement meant to break his opponent's concentration on him. "Go slow until you get a feel for the movements. Trust your paws, let them lead your body. Think about where you're going and where your opponent thinks you're going, then move smooth and gracefully."

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"