[Training] barefoot in the wildest winter

In the aftermath of the meteor crash, Alys had changed. Once, she'd worn primarily dresses and carried only a single dagger with which to protect herself. Now she favored pants and shirts, wore a variety of daggers in varying sizes, and carried a bow at all times.

She'd had plans for this season - good plans. Happy plans. But those plans involved leaving Halo, and to desert it now, when things had grown so dire... it left a bad taste in her mouth. So for now, at least, she would do what she could to help. At least for a little while.

But it wasn't going to be enough to help Halo; she also needed to help herself. So it was that one morning found her in a deserted part of town, using her telekinesis to flick daggers into a makeshift target nearby. She was growing more adept with them, but it wasn't yet second nature to wield her telepathy. Not like her healing magic, which had taken root and grown as naturally as breathing.

She called the daggers back to her, one at a time, resheathing them at her hips and on her thighs as she did so. Then she started again.

ALYS GLASSE

I have never feared the storm

Sah was passing by on his way from trading in fur when he spotted Alys. It was obvious what she was doing. Walking over he softly cleared his throat to get her attention, "Hi, Alys." He gave her a brief scan, "I'm glad to see that you're ok." The damage in Halo could certainly have been worse but people had still been harmed. It was a relief to see that his fellow Abandoned was, unharmed. Her change in appearance was welcomed. She looked ready for the coming days.

The Wild Thunder nodded towards Alys' target, "Would you like someone to train with? I've had my telekinesis for a while and have made good progress with it." Somewhat of an understatement given his mastery of the magic but now wasn't the time for bragging.

Sah

Sah's voice caught her by surprise, and she turned to look over her shoulder at the approaching Abandoned. She offered a small smile. "Oh, hi, Sah. You too," she said, meaning it. She may not know the man well, but he'd always been kind to her, and both Ru and Tal were fond of him. Losing him would have hurt them all.

The seer recalled the dagger she'd hurled and sheathed it before tucking her hair behind one ear and turning to Sah. "Someone to train with would be nice," she admitted. "My telekinesis is my weakest magic." She made a face. It was almost as weak as her hand-to-hand combat, but she was working with Deimos on that. "Do you have any suggestions?"

ALYS GLASSE

I have never feared the storm

Sah smiled gently, "It can be hard to master at first. You're thinking about movement in a new way." He counted off on his fingers, "You have to consider the forces acting against you such as gravity and wind. You have to increase your endurance with it to be able to handle larger, or higher quantities of objects. You also have to increase your skill and speed so that you can switch between targets and adjust your trajectory quickly. It's a mental challenge as much as a magical one."

Dropping his hand, the Wild Thunder chuckled, "It's certainly a lot. Especially at first. I found that the best way to improve telekinesis is to work on one facet of it at a time." Sah channeled his creation magic and created a trio of daggers that floated in the air beside him. Flicking a wrist, he sent all three of them at the target straight on. They landed in the center ring with a 'thunk'.

"How about we try this? One of us throws our daggers with telekinesis while the other tries to stop them in midair with their own magic?" It would be a good way to focus on the acting forces aspect of telekinesis as well as a way to increase the strength of the magic.

Sah

Alys listened intently, fingering the hilt of one of the daggers at her waist. Somehow, Sah managed to put into words all of the feelings she'd had while trying to master her new abilities. She remembered working on her illusion in a similar way - working on bigger things, then things further away, carefully honing one skill at a time until she was capable of combining them. Maybe if she could do the same with her telekinesis, it would make things easier.

The seer watched with envy as Sah's daggers - three at once, where Alys could only manage one, or maybe two - landed in the center of her makeshift target. She nodded to his suggestion. "Sure," she said, then pulled the dagger from her waist, manipulating it with her telekinesis until it was positioned over her shoulder, its blade pointed at the target. Then, with a frown of concentration, she sent it sailing toward the target.

ALYS GLASSE

I have never feared the storm

Sah nodded encouragingly as Alys raised her dagger. Readying his magic, he waited for her to throw it. Once it was in motion, he acted. Feeling the power behind her throw, he adjusted his own magic's strength to be comparable. He wanted to provide just enough resistance to challenge her, not overwhelm her.

His telekinesis spun around Alys' dagger, congregating at its tip to try and pause the weapon's trajectory in the air. Sah focused on keeping the pressure even and steady, a wall of magic that Alys's telekinesis would need to push through if she wanted her dagger to reach the target.

Their training continued as such until Alys had gotten a better handle on her telekinesis. Sah was certain that it would only grow with time.

-{FIN}

Sah