Aim for the Middle [Attn: Dedicated Alric Aurella]

Welcome to the Warder Yards. This is the place for Warder and Trainee roleplays. Informal non-training interactions take place here, as well as some extended role plays.
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Welcome to the Warder Yards. This is the place for Warder and Trainee roleplays. Informal non-training interactions take place here, as well as some extended role plays. Yet these events may take place at any area of the Tower, and sometimes outside of it, since the images to the left merely serves as inspiration towards the sceneries of your stories. Channelers are always welcome, and might even find his or her bondmate through the threads that are displayed below.
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Bella
Female Channeller Representative
Posts: 5615
Joined: April 14th, 2015, 11:28 pm
PC: Miahala Darrow Sedai
SC: Lysira Viathene Gaidin
TC: Gareth Tomosan Asha'man
QC: Natlya Cade Gaidin
QC: Andraste Alhandra Sedai
Location: New England

Aim for the Middle [Attn: Dedicated Alric Aurella]

Post by Bella » April 6th, 2017, 6:10 pm

It was early, but this was her favorite time to be on the archery range.

Dawn had crested the horizon, but it wasn't fully morning. The morning mists were only starting to rise, but you could still see as clearly and far as you needed to...if you had good eyes. Luckily for Lysira, where her vocal chords failed her, her other senses did not. The woman had keen eyes and ears, and she used all her advantages.

The Grey Tower was awake, but there were few out in the Yards just yet and even less on the archery field. It felt like...her own personal playground at that hour, which was why she chose it.

The heron mark on her bow glittered in the pale orange of the morning's light, but she knew she could never allow herself the luxury of complacency. She was out on the range every day that she was in the Tower and not out on some mission, which admittedly she tried to make as frequently as possible.

She missed her son's company. She missed her...former husband and former bond-mate as well, but she thought of that less. It had been something they tried, but again, it hadn't worked. Now she just kept herself busy as a loyal servant to the Tower, at ease in the knowledge that her son was well-protected at least.

Three arrows. One. Two. Three. Fired in such rapid succession that the less observant may have missed the sight of her hands, but all three--thwit, thunk; thwit, thunk; thwit, thunk--landed dead center on the bullseye-covered hay bale.

Lysira smiled, and contemplated her next exercise.

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Locke
"The Path of Daggers"
Posts: 906
Joined: April 13th, 2016, 5:21 pm
PC: Terric of the Salt Flat Sept of the Nakai Aiel
SC: Alric Aurella
TC: Nasrin Naceri

Re: Aim for the Middle [Attn: Dedicated Alric Aurella]

Post by Locke » April 7th, 2017, 6:30 pm

Alric
Alric had wanted to dust off his skills with a crossbow for ages now. He just hadn’t ever found the time. That was a lie. He had never made the time. Now seemed as good a time as any, with… No, he wasn’t going to dwell on it. At least in part, his desire to relearn the weapon stemmed from a desire to fill the emptiness she’d left. An idle thought whispered that the whole would be worst if she’d been his bondmate. He’d wanted to though. Bond her that was. Maybe it was for the best. One less ethical conflict in his life.

Somebody was already at the range, when he arrived with his borrowed crossbow. He recognized the Gaidin who had organized that little excursion into the city a while back. He gave the diminutive woman a polite nod but didn’t strike up a conversation. Instead, he stepped into a lane on the far end of the firing line. He wasn’t exactly in the mood to just shoot the breeze.

Once in position he addressed his target. Painted burlap on a bundle of wood and straw. Lowering the front of the heavy crossbow, to the ground, Alric slid a booted foot through the loop and mounted the crank. His motions were clumsy at first as he cranked the bowstring back. Slowly, training from almost half a lifetime ago began to return. He’d never been a crossbowman, but every man in Damodred’s army had at least learned how to fire them, even if they would rarely have a reason to use one in battle.

He felt a faint flicker of pleasure of a job well done as the string latched into place. Small victories. Now, to see if he still remembered the second part. Fitting a bolt into place, Alric shouldered the weapon. He leaned his weight forward and steadied his breath. It might have been his imagination, but the weapon seemed to quiver with potential energy as it waited to release the tension and send the bolt flying. Alric sited in with small metal studs on the weapon, lining up on the painted bullseye. The heavy crossbow seemed to beg for the gift of release. With a last steadying breath, Alric squeezed the trigger, the string snapped forward sending the bolt sailing towards the target.

THUNK!

It struck, low on the target. He wasn’t too upset by this. The ability to quickly fire and reload in concert with a squad was a much more important skill for a crossbowman than being able to constantly shoot bullseyes. Though that didn’t hurt either. He set about loading the weapon again. This time he placed himself in an imaginary crossbow unit. Counting in his head, he cranked and and readied to fire.
Sweet Buns or GTFO
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Bella
Female Channeller Representative
Posts: 5615
Joined: April 14th, 2015, 11:28 pm
PC: Miahala Darrow Sedai
SC: Lysira Viathene Gaidin
TC: Gareth Tomosan Asha'man
QC: Natlya Cade Gaidin
QC: Andraste Alhandra Sedai
Location: New England

Re: Aim for the Middle [Attn: Dedicated Alric Aurella]

Post by Bella » April 10th, 2017, 10:00 pm

When he approached the archery range, Lysira also recognized the Dedicated--somewhat. She knew that he had been in Hama Valon on that night. The night that so many things had happened on, both that she knew about at the time and had found out about later. The game that evening had been played extravagantly, and she wasn't really sure who won.

Her attention turned to curiosity as she realized he bore a crossbow. In truth, although she was a master of the bow, she had little experience with her chosen weapon's more mechanical cousin.

As a long-time Gaidin, weapon's master, and former Gaidin Captain, little made her concerned for propriety. She was curious about his weapon and so she paused her own training in order to watch. It always interested her that something so similar in many ways could also be to fundamentally different. Both shot arrows, but that was about it.

She waited until he paused and caught his attention.

Lys was, of course, without a translator. Back to that night when her second translator since returning to the Tower had been murdered, and again in a grisly fashion. She was beginning to wonder if she was just bad luck for the poor Ji'val who worked with her...but that was neither here nor there for the moment.

It was always a fifty-fifty shot when someone would understand her, so she gave it a chance. 'Can you understand me?' she signed slowly, lifting her dark brows enough to show that it was a question--in case he didn't know the signs.

User avatar
Locke
"The Path of Daggers"
Posts: 906
Joined: April 13th, 2016, 5:21 pm
PC: Terric of the Salt Flat Sept of the Nakai Aiel
SC: Alric Aurella
TC: Nasrin Naceri

Re: Aim for the Middle [Attn: Dedicated Alric Aurella]

Post by Locke » April 13th, 2017, 10:41 am

Alric
The second bolt embedded itself in the target in the second most outer ring, low and to the left. Better, but still not good. He could hopefully at least walk his shots on to target. He caught the Gaidin, he thought her name was Lysa or Lysira or something, approaching. He paused in the middle of cocking the crossbow again, when he realized she wanted to talk to him.

He hadn’t been in the mood to chat, but he also didn’t think brushing off a Gaidin was wise. He released the mechanism allowing the string to relax befor removing the crank again. She began signing to him once she had his attention. That was right, she did have an interpreter with her last time. He tried to follow her gestures. Pointing at him… then her mouth and ears, then at her chest. It seemed simple enough. Context said it was either a greeting or a question if he could understand her. He could probably follow along with simple messages through brute force reasoning, but that probably wasn’t what she meant.

He did his best to mimic her signs, pointing at himself first then her. He added a wavering hand and a slightly uncertain twist to his face. “I think I can figure it out, but I’m sorry Gaidin, I won’t be able to keep up.” He tried not to glance back at his crossbow. He didn’t want to socialize, but he didn’t want to be rude either.
Sweet Buns or GTFO
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User avatar
Bella
Female Channeller Representative
Posts: 5615
Joined: April 14th, 2015, 11:28 pm
PC: Miahala Darrow Sedai
SC: Lysira Viathene Gaidin
TC: Gareth Tomosan Asha'man
QC: Natlya Cade Gaidin
QC: Andraste Alhandra Sedai
Location: New England

Re: Aim for the Middle [Attn: Dedicated Alric Aurella]

Post by Bella » April 14th, 2017, 1:56 am

Fortunately, her hearing was perfect so she didn't need him to return the signs but it was a common error. She smiled, slightly but ruefully, and just listened to his reply. Her dark eyes flickered over him and she wondered if his body language simply said he was reserved or that he didn't want to talk to her.

Well, she wasn't keen to force chatting, but was curious. And she tended to indulge her curiosity.

Lysira contemplated whether she should write it down or continue her attempted pantomime routine. The latter could be frustrating while the former was slow. She'd give the latter one shot and then work it from there. She pointed at his crossbow and then lifted her own bow, which she had rested against her leg while 'speaking.'

She pointed at the crossbow again, then herself, and shook her head with hand spread in a show of curiosity. And if this didn't work, she'd write it down.

User avatar
Locke
"The Path of Daggers"
Posts: 906
Joined: April 13th, 2016, 5:21 pm
PC: Terric of the Salt Flat Sept of the Nakai Aiel
SC: Alric Aurella
TC: Nasrin Naceri

Re: Aim for the Middle [Attn: Dedicated Alric Aurella]

Post by Locke » May 9th, 2017, 3:21 am

Grumpy Bear
He followed her gaze towards his crossbow then towards the golden herons on her bow. Something was off about his form or something and she was going to correct him. It had to be. Most days, he’d be happy to take advice from a more experienced warrior, but today, the repetitive action of shooting and reloading was almost a form of meditation. Even if he’d only just started for the day, he was already prepared to lose himself in the motions. The veteran won out over the spurned lover though. He hadn’t shot a crossbow in ages, if he was drilling bad habits, he was better off not shooting.

“My apologies, Gaidin,” Alric said, hefting the crossbow. He handed it to her butt first once he was certain it wasn’t cocked. Maybe if they finished this quickly, he’d be left to brood in peace. On the other hand, maybe this was just the distraction he needed.
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