Aurielle Adravendi

As tired as she was, Aurielle refused to let training lapse for those under her mentorship. So with the grey dawn barely light enough to see the horizon, she waited by the stream, dewclaw deep in the mud, and howled for Caelia. Today it was mud-sparring, learning to hold one’s footing and balance in slick, gloopy mud. She and Loshir had spent the past hour filling a bladder with water and soaking this spot to make it a veritable wallow, and she wore much of the evidence of her work on her white coat. She glanced to Loshir who sprawled grumpily on solid, dry ground, his black fur just as splotched and smeared as hers, and his tail and glower spoke loud volumes of how little he liked wearing mud. Ideally, Aurielle planned to edge Caelia’s training into blind fighting. Mud would be smeared over the Nerve’s closed eyes to imitate blindness. With luck, rigorous training sessions like this would mean that Caelia would not need to rely on sight to fight. As her call echoed against the lone hill in the center of the plains, she experimentally swiped a paw through the muck, testing her footing and nodding to herself thoughtfully. It should be slick enough to prove a challenge. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

It'd been a long while since she'd properly trained, and Caelia was almost surprised to hear Aurielle call for her. Things, at least from her perspective, had been at a bit of a standstill since the volcano's eruption. The effects of the event hadn't seemed to fade, at least not completely - spring seemed far less sunny than she remembered the previous one, even with how far west Valhalla was. The weather wasn't as pleasant as she would've liked but there was nothing they could do about it other than to persevere, as they had always done, and would always continue to do. A soft huff of air left her throat as she redirected herself toward Aurielle's call, gliding easily over the familiar plains. What exactly she intended to do today, Caelia had no idea. She wore a faint, barely noticeable smile as she approached Aurielle, her gaze bright and interested as she closed the distance between them. Interestingly enough, both Aurielle and her companion Loshir looked quite filthy, and already she was beginning to dislike what their appearances implied. She didn't mind metaphorically getting her paws dirty, but literally, she was less interested. "Aurielle. Afternoon," Caelia greeted her after a moment of thought, that faint smile reappearing, lingering for just a few seconds before drifting away again. "What exactly are you working on here?" She asked curiously, hoping she wouldn't be getting half as filthy as Aurielle, but she had a feeling her hopes were about to me utterly shattered.

Aurielle Adravendi

Caelia was prompt in her arrival, and the Spirit nodded with approval at the young woman. While only Cairo had regularly sought her out for training, she was glad to see that Caelia was at least willing to answer a call and arrive. She caught the wary look the Adravendi woman cast the mud and an almost wicked grin – genuine amusement – slid upon her features as she glanced at the sky. “Morning, I should say…” Her eyes returned to Caelia and she cocked her head, adding, “And today, you will be getting an intensive lesson in fighting. And at least one spar. In later lessons we may move up to two or three spars—after all, a siege or raid is full of multiple battles. If you don’t lose your first fight defending or attacking, you go straight into another fight.” She shifted her weight slowly, letting the younger wolf observe as she patted a paw on the sloppy mud. “We’ll work in this, but it does wash off well. There was a training technique my father put me through, and his mother before him. Wearing mud across your eyes to keep you blind will help you learn to use more than your eyes in battle.” She padded forward to dry ground and turned to Caelia, asking, “Can you run me through what you already learned from your mother before we start?” Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Was it still morning? Perhaps she'd been awake longer than she realized. Caelia cast a brief glance to the sky, though quickly drew her attention back to Aurielle and the task at hand, offering little more than a hum of acknowledgement.Today's lesson was... apparently something to do with mud. The Adravendi woman didn't bother to hide the clear distaste that was visible on her features, deciding that she'd go along with whatever Aurielle wanted her to do, regardless of whether or not she liked it. That seemed entirely irrelevant to her.

"Sounds like a plan," Caelia said, her voice serious. She did want to spend more time practicing her fighting skills; her conversation with Artur had only reminded her of that even more. She couldn't let these chances slip away from her, not if she wanted to improve her chance at succeeding in future fights - that was important. Her methods were strange but she also saw the benefit of what she was saying. What if an enemy struck in the night? Or when a heavy fog cloaked Valhalla's lands, something that wasn't at all uncommon? She needed to know how to use her other senses to guide her through a fight. "Makes sense," she agreed, sounding a bit hesitant, though receptive to the idea.

She thought back to what lessons with her mother had been like. A pang of hurt entered her heart at the thought. The pain would never totally fade, despite how subtly it had dulled, but even now it alarmed her with how quickly it grabbed hold of her. "She mainly focused on how to protect ourselves, rather than harming the opponent. Knowing how to protect our vitals, and knowing when we were outnumbered or just plain defeated, and when to flee." Caelia had a hard time imagining not holding her ground against an enemy, but losing her own life due to stubbornness sounded like a bad idea too. She hoped dearly that she'd never have to make that choice, unsure if it would be quite as easy as her mother had made it sound.

Aurielle Adravendi

Amusement was so rare to capture these days, but Caelia’s distaste brought a faint bubble of it to the surface. The hesitation in her agreement wasn’t unnoticed, but Aurielle didn’t begrudge the young woman her reservations. She listened to Caelia’s explanation of what all Gwen had taught them in the short time she’d gotten to enjoy motherhood, and Aurielle nodded as Caelia finished. “That’s a very good foundation to go off of. First, before we spar, I’ll run you through a few basic attacks on firm ground here.” She shifted in her stance, showing the balanced position of her paws, as she gestured with her muzzle at her feet. “One of the most important things will be balance during your attacks. Your tail will act as some measure of balance, a natural rudder. When you go to stomp someone’s paw or scratch at them, you should remember to shift your weight to the rest of your paws to remain balanced, so that you aren’t leaning into your attack. If you’re leaning into it, you have the chance of toppling if you were leaning into your opponent’s body, for instance.” She demonstrated against an invisible enemy, shifting her weight smoothly to her other three paws as her left front paw snapped sharply upward then down in a hard slamming stomp into the ground. As she looked over the younger woman, she continued, “You’re a lighter built wolf, so your advantage is usually agility. Don’t let a larger opponent get you trapped where you can’t retreat to attack again. I myself am mostly limited to slashing and dashing, as my canines are both a fine weapon, and a handicap. If I get them caught the wrong way, I might snap one. I’m not entirely certain if that will happen for sure, but why risk it?” She demonstrated again against an opponent, miming the slashing of fangs toward a throat, automatically swaying back almost as soon as the potential blow landed, tail fluttering like a pennant behind her as she moved. Finally, she stood, nodding to Caelia as she said, “Now you demonstrate back to me, and add in what you think should go into your own attacks. Everyone’s style is a bit different.” Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Though she agreed with Aurielle's plan, the wariness didn't seem to fade from her gaze as she studied her and their surroundings both. In the case of an actual battle, she didn't doubt she could forget her reservations about cleanliness but when sparring with Aurielle it was much harder to pretend she didn't dislike these current arrangements. Finally she entered the mud, wishing again she could hide the distaste at the filth as he coated her paws and limbs. Finding somewhere to properly bathe after this was already sounding like a fantastic idea.

Aurielle started with basic attacks and almost instantly her demeanor shifted, distaste replaced by studious interest. Better herself was a priority and something she would gladly dedicated herself to, for the sake of her family. Mirroring Aurielle's stance, she widened the position of her limbs and nodded slowly. Being too stiff, or too relaxed, were both detrimental in a fight - and shifting ones balance to remain perfectly upright was important. She tried to focus on the position of each of her limbs and how much weight she was giving each, trying to envision how she might move in case of a sudden collision. At least her agility might give her an advantage, as Aurielle went on to say; she might be more successful leaping away from an attack rather than trying to meet a much larger opponent head-on and she knew there was no shame in using her light build to her advantage.

Carefully watching Aurielle's demonstrated movements, she tried to imagine how she might attack an opponent that did not exist. She supposed it depended on their size, and how they were coming at her but... she leapt forward, watching a spray of mud rain up and coat her chest as she imagined battling someone, jaws parting and aiming where she thought their throat might be, before jerking away quickly, mimicking a pulling motion.

Aurielle Adravendi

As she worked with her apprentice, she smiled faintly as Caelia took in what she had to teach, Nodding slightly as Caelia mimicked and lunged. In an aside part of her mind she wondered if there were ways to help a learning wolf really apply their jaws without worrying that they might hurt their sparring partners or mentors… A memory dredged up from when this very litter were pups. Viviane’s little figure of a wolf. Was there a way to make a larger, life sized version of a wolf to practice on? Something to consider. As Caelia completed the movements, Aurielle stepped forward again, and said easily, “I’d like you to practice those movements, whether by yourself or with your brothers, or Red. Anyone you can spar or train with, don’t pass up the opportunity unless your gut says something’s wrong about the situation. If you’re set on rising to Sentinel or Lodestar, you’re going to need to do a lot of sparring and training. Show me your ambition and dedication. Track me down if you want training. That is part of initiative. If you feel you need a workout, drag me by the mane and we’ll train.” Her eyes were intent on Caelia’s as she spoke, before a spark of challenge flickered in them and she added, “Now we’ll practice dodging. First, you come at me, however you thing you can catch me, and I’ll show you how to dodge that attack. Try not to warn me of what you want to do” She settled lightly, almost imperceptibly into a ready stance, waiting to see what the young woman would try. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Grateful that she didn't have a thick layer of mud coating her eyes, she tried to put aside her reservations about mud-sparring for now. The way the mud sprayed up onto her pale coat, covering her chest and belly, wasn't exactly appealing to her but she was shifting into a different mindset - this lesson was about practicing fighting skills, not about mud or whether or not she liked it. "I will," she agreed easily. While mimicking the moves of a fight seemed useful, she wondered to what extent solo training really would help her improve. Aurielle encouraged her to train not just with her brothers or red, but anyone she could find, as long as the situation felt right.

Next up - actually practicing her moves on Aurielle. A determined look crossed her features as she hunkered down and narrowed her eyes, assessing just what move she ought to do. An easy move would be to aim for her neck, but her long fur mane made Caelia wonder if that might be a trickier than she anticipated. Trying not to give away just what she was thinking, after a long pause she kicked off hard toward her, charging head-on; but at the last second she diverted to the right, sending up another spray of mud and muck as she dove toward one of her front limbs, near the joint - hoping if maybe she caught her off-guard she could cause her to lose her balance entirely from the start.

Aurielle Adravendi

She watched as Caelia worked through decisions, and had a feeling she knew where the younger wolf would try for. As Caelia pushed off, Aurielle waited, and as she spotted the tense of muscles, Aurielle moved in tandem with Caelia, Sidestepping with a small hop to her own right, away from Caelia’s jaws as her snapped up the forelimb Caelia sought and instead countered the young wolf’s attack, aiming to bring her raised paw down on Lia’s head between the ears and press down, aiming to send the girl face-first into the mud. Regardless of success, Aurielle moved to leap out of reach, aiming to put several feet between them as she explained, “That is a counter, where instead of dodging, you attempt to divert your opponent’s attack, or put them in a difficult spot if they get their attack—they either have to abandon that attack, or be caught in yours as a price for their success. For instance, if you went to bite my scruff, I could slam my head into your jaw, or aim to bite you on the face to fend you off.” She grinned at the young woman as added, “Ready for our first real spar?” Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Though she'd hoped her attack would land, and catch Aurielle completely off guard, it wasn't entirely surprising when she fell short. Aurielle deftly moved, side-stepping - and though Caelia sought to move to follow her subtle movements, the next thing she knew she felt a pressure from above, and suddenly she was colliding with the mud. Her reaction was aggravation, and instinctively the fur on her neck bristled as she pulled herself up and shook the mud from her face. Even lifting a paw to swipe at the muck would do no good, as her paws were coated with just as much mud as her face now was.

But this had been the lesson, hadn't it? Using ones environment to their advantage, and likewise being cautious of surroundings when in the midst of a fight. Caelia knew she'd caused this by slipping up - trying to land an attack so close to the mud had been foolish - but it didn't stop the agitation at her current predicament. She wrinkled her nose, as much in distaste as in an attempt to rid the mud from her muzzle. Now that she was filthy, she was ready for anything, including a real spar... right here in this pile of mud, apparently. Caelia nodded to Aurielle's words of advice, knowing she was right about what she was saying. Knowing exactly how to respond to an attack, to twist it in your favor instead of letting it land, was a valuable skill that she knew she could acquire in time.

"I'm always ready," Caelia quipped back, loosening up now. While normally around Aurielle she was composed and stiff - hell, she was generally that way around most wolves - the sudden rush of adrenaline at being slammed into the mud seemed to be coursing through her veins now, and she even let a faint grin peek through, an unusual thing for her. Without giving Aurielle time to prepare (or so she hoped), Caelia made to charge forward, splashing up mud as she pushed forward hard and made to dive for the left side of Aurielle's neck, aiming to grab her scruff between her mud-soaked jaws, likely getting her dirty in the process regardless of how her attack landed - or didn't land.

Caelia vs Aurielle for Spar
Round 1 / ?
Age: Over 1 Year
Size: Medium
Build: Light
Skills: Intermediate Intellectual & Beginner Fighter

Aurielle Adravendi

Aurielle grinned at Caelia’s quip, glad to see the reserved young woman relaxing and showing what might actually be under the veneer Caelia generally presented to the world. And then she spotted the tense of muscles, the only warning before her apprentice leapt into action. Aurielle surged a stride to her own right, out of reach of Caelia’s jaws, before doubling back on her tracks, twisting on her hind paws, front paws lifting and crossing over to her left as she pushed off with her coiled under haunches, aiming to slam into Caelia’s left side, aiming to hit her broadside with the middle of her chest and send the younger wolf staggering. Simultaneously, she sought to wrap her left foreleg over Caelia’s back behind her shoulders, while her right forepaw sought to shove into Caelia’s left hind leg at the hock, aiming to destabilize the girl’s balance and topple her. Her own jaws parted, head snapping to her left as she aimed to snatch for Caelia’s scruff, though she was infinitely more gentle with this attack, not wanting to deal lasting damage to her pupil should her bite land. Aurielle Rhiannon Marie Adravendi vs Caelia for Spar Round 1/3 Age: Over one Year Size: Medium Build: Medium Offensive Battle Accessory: Bladed leather bracers Defensive Battle Accessory: Leather torso armor Companion 1: Mountain lion, Male - Battle Mutation 1: Long upper canines - Offensive Skills: Master Intellectual & Expert Fighter Specialty: N/A MODERATOR OPTIONS Edit this user in Mod CP There are currently no notes on this user Edit user notes in Mod CP Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

It wasn't surprising that Aurielle largely anticipated her attack. Still she pushed on, even when she saw Aurielle begin to react, charging for her neck with parted jaws. At the last second the older wolf spun around, deftly moving to the left and swinging around in one fluid motion. Next thing she knew, Aurielle was colliding with her side, one of her front limbs landing just over her back.

The force was enough to cause her to stagger, though she wouldn't let Aurielle topple her quite so easily. Regaining her balance was quite the feat, though she adjusted her limbs and tried as hard as she could to hold strong against her alpha's force. The bite on her scruff landed, though she struggled to wiggle free, jaws parting as she snapped at whatever she could find - in this case, one of her front limbs, though thanks to her compromised position she wasn't quite sure she'd get a very good grip if she managed to find hold at all.

Caelia vs Aurielle for Spar
Round 2 / 3
Age: Over 1 Year
Size: Medium
Build: Light
Skills: Intermediate Intellectual & Beginner Fighter

One messy spar tag for you!

Aurielle Adravendi

Her young opponent staggered, but held strong under the Spirit’s collision course and Aurielle hid a satisfied smile at the tenacity of her apprentice as she landed her gentle bite. As Caelia wriggled and snapped for the nearest foreleg, Aurielle braced as if to push the younger wolf over into the mud, hind claws digging in for propulsion, seeking firmer soil deeper in the mud to traction as her mud-caked tail whipped for balance, hoping her young apprentice would brace into her pressure in an attempt not to be toppled. Caelia’s teeth glanced across her elbow, scoring a light laceration in the skin. Blood welled but Aurielle grinned through the younger wolf’s fur as she suddenly sought to reverse her pressure, simultaneously seeking to use the foreleg she’d managed to snag over Caelia’s back, and the bite in her scruff to jerk the younger wolf toward herself, her other three legs seeking the ground to resettle her weight as she sought to abruptly release her pupil from her bite and disengage. Aurielle Rhiannon Marie Adravendi vs Caelia for Spar Round 2/3 Age: Over 1 Year Size: Medium Build: Medium Offensive Battle Accessory: Bladed leather bracers Defensive Battle Accessory: Leather torso armor Companion 1: Mountain lion, Male - Battle Mutation 1: Long upper canines - Offensive Skills: Master Intellectual & Expert Fighter Specialty: N/A Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Aurielle's position, with one of her limbs splayed over her back, made it difficult to really regain her balance. Though she felt like she might have some hold on the ground below, the mud was thick and deeper than she'd initially realized, and each movement made it feel like she might lose her balance completely again and realli go toppling over. There was nothing to really hold on to except the sheer momentum of her own movements, and she hoped that by pushing back against Aurielle's force she might find a way to keep herself upright.

Instead of trying to jerk away from Caelia, her fangs briefly found purchase on Aurielle's leg, though as she expected her hold didn't last for long at all. She shifted her attention away from her own attack and toward what her opponent was currently doing. The paw that had laid over her back seemed to pull her closer, Aurielle's bite on her scruff deepening as she attempted to pull Caelia even closer.. and then all at once she released, sending Caelia sprawling forward. In a last-ditch attempt to not go sprawling face-first into the mud, she sought to grab hold of somewhere near Aurielle's muzzle, unsure whether her attack would land or not... but hopefully she wouldn't end up eating a mouthful of mud.

Caelia vs Aurielle for Spar
Round 3 / 3
Age: Over 1 Year
Size: Medium
Build: Light
Skills: Intermediate Intellectual & Beginner Fighter

Aurielle Adravendi

Her attacks proved fruitful and, as Caelia’s jaws went for her muzzle Aurielle ducked suddenly away, feeling her opponent's breath warm her face, haunches coiling as her chin suddenly dipped, mane dragging in the mud crown presented to her opponent as she suddenly shoved off with her hind legs, back claws sinking down into the muck. She sought to drive her crown into the side of Caelia’s face, at the jaw, all her force put into that launch of her hind end. She sought to continue the attack, right foreleg stretching out to aim for Caelia’s left shoulder-blade and plant squarely, aiming to shove the younger woman sideways as her left foreleg lifted and aimed for Caelia’s left front ankle, hoping to shove it out from under the girl. She was pleased. For a beginner who had missed out on much of her initial training, Caelia was holding up well, not giving up hope as each attack missed or glanced off the Spirit. She’d be a formidable wolf when she was fully trained, making her late mother’s name proud. Aurielle Rhiannon Marie Adravendi vs Caelia for Spar Round 3/3 Age: Over 1 Year Size: Medium Build: Medium Offensive Battle Accessory: Bladed leather bracers Defensive Battle Accessory: Leather torso armor Companion 1: Mountain lion, Male - Battle Mutation 1: Long upper canines - Offensive Skills: Master Intellectual & Expert Fighter Specialty: Tactician Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Labhair an Sean-Teanga." ---- "Hear" ---- Think

The winner is....

Aurielle!

Caelia must give up by submitting, fleeing or passing out. Totals: Aurielle: Adjusted rolls: 102.2    48.4    93    47.5 Total: 349.32 Caeliai: Adjusted rolls: 26.25    85    89.25    39.6 Total: 240.10

[Lazuli]

Though she lunged for Aurielle, the older woman was swift in ducking and retaliating with a firm shove. Caelia fumbled, sent sprawling sideways straight into the mud. Though previously it had coated her chest, belly, and legs, now it completely covered her. She wasn't happy about it, but she was more so tired from their little brawl. Carefully she pulled herself upright, her lax posture making it clear that she was submitting. Aurielle had won, fair and square.

"Thank you for spending time with me today," Caelia said, her words genuine, though her smile was tight-lipped. "I think rest will do me good now. And a bath," she added, her tone factual, though clearly quite tired. She'd exerted a lot of energy training and sparring today - they both had, if she was being honest - and she wanted to wash herself up and rest for awhile now. Dipping her head to Aurielle and trudging out of the mud, she bid her a silent farewell as she moved away from her, hoping to find somewhere to bathe.

-exit Caelia-