It's Not Just About Physical Exercise [Closed Fanfic]

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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Roan
Non-Channeller Representative
Posts: 2463
Joined: May 27th, 2015, 6:46 am
PC: Riahana
SC: Tia Tomosan, Aes Sedai
TC: Paks Liard, Ji'Val
Location: Northerly

It's Not Just About Physical Exercise [Closed Fanfic]

Post by Roan » July 24th, 2017, 3:25 pm

Riahana Gaidin
Riahana Gaidin had much to contemplate after the massive attack on the Citadel. Blademaster she may be but the title and skill level did not mean she was invincible, and certainly not immortal. She couldn’t remember a time when she’d been so distracted as to allow an enemy to get the drop on her. The massive beast picked her up as if she was light as a feather, and she could do nothing to get out of its grips.

The Healing Gareth performed on her meant she was whole and didn’t need near as much time to recover. She slept like the dead that night and the next day, and ate as if each meal would be her last for the next couple of days. The forces of the Citadel, along with the Shienaran reinforcements, turned back the Shadow, thwarting their attack. Once Gareth thought she was ready, they Traveled back to the Tower.

Rested and well fed, the former Mistress of Arms cornered the current Master of Arms with every intention of tearing him to pieces for the fool decision to close the Tower to any and all, including those who might try to Travel there. That one decision nearly cost everyone at the Citadel their lives. Had it not been for the Shienaran reinforcements, along with the will of every single person in the Citadel, there was a real chance none of them would have lived to see another day. Riahana very nearly didn’t, and had it not been for her Healer Husband. . .

Well. . .what mattered was that Riahana was still very much alive. Being thrown from the Citadel ramparts was a humbling experience for the blademaster. She couldn’t help but be contemplative in the aftermath of it all. If she’d been more proficient in unarmed and grappling, could she have escaped the Trolloc’s grasp?

The Gaidin decided to double down on her efforts to learn and improve her unarmed skills. Her morning routine of going through sword forms was followed up with one on one sessions with Malina Gaidin. With each session, Malina brought her sense of humour along with a level of intensity meant to push Riahana. As in shape as Ria was, by the end of each lesson, she was drenched in sweat, sore and exhausted. At the same time, she always left with a sense of accomplishment.

Malina rarely followed a typical lesson plan, and loved to do things that were unconventional. Sometimes, it meant Ria would run laps with sandbags over each shoulder, while other times it meant she’d have Ria sprint up mountain paths somewhere in the Mountains of Mist. Much of what Malina focused on was conditioning and strength training, but every lesson came back to fighting skills.

Ria had no idea what to expect of the morning’s session. All Malina told her was eat a big breakfast with lots of protein. . .this was after eating dinner with Ria the night before, making sure the Gaidin ate a sizeable meal then too. Given the time of year, the mornings were cool, but not uncomfortably so. Ria wasn’t surprised she beat Malina to the Yards and spent her time stretching, knowing the unarmed expert would not go easy on her student.

“Ah. . .stretching out, I see. Smart woman. I think we are ready to move beyond doing laps, carrying sandbags and general exercises. You are perhaps the most fit fifty some odd old woman I know,” Malina said with a smirk.

Ria turned around and offered a small smile to Malina, but it faultered when she saw the Gaidin had another four people with her. Arching a brow, Ria tilted her head slightly, “Group lesson?”

Malina’s smirk grew, “Not so much. We’re on to your final exam. Let’s call it a practical.”

“A practical. Well at least now I know why you wanted to make sure I got a good meal in me,” Ria said with a wry grin.

“There is a reason for everything I have my students do. You tasked me to train you one on one, but for your final lesson, it is one on. . .well. . .we shall see if it is one on two, three or four. How you do will also decide whether this actually will be your final lesson. Mind. . .I’ll insist on one on one sparring sessions each week, just to keep us both sharp,” Malina explained. She tilted her head slightly, “So. . .are you ready?”

Riahana had already placed her fancloak on a near by post. She wore a simple white tunic, black breeches and riding boots. Malina told her to keep her clothing simple, thus she did. Arching a brow, the Gaidin and former Mistress of Arms dropped into a guard stance, “Does it look like I’m ready?”

“We shall see,” Malina simply said as she waved a hand towards her. One of the Gaidin with Malina stepped forward, his face void of emotion.

The man was a good head or so taller than Ria with a build not unlike Gareth. The difference between the man approaching and her Asha’man husband? The Gaidin had been training with Malina for nigh on a decade, and despite his size, he was wicked fast.

The Void settled over Riahana, and she welcomed it as an old friend. Any emotional turmoil she may have felt would have melted away as other senses came into sharp focus. The impassive expression on the man’s face suggested he was also wrapped within the Void’s embrace.

With a blade in hand, Ria woudln’t have hesitated to make the first move, as her speed and skill often gave her a distinct advantage over her opponents. In this case, she knew the man who approached would be more skilled than her. On the one hand, letting him strike first could give her a feel for him, but on the other. . .he could end the fight without breaking a sweat if he was as skilled at unarmed as she was with the blade.

The giant Gaidin didn’t hesitate, taking a shuffled step forward as he swung a left jab towards Ria’s jaw. It was easy enough for Ria to lean back so he missed, but the man continued his advance, following up the left with a right hook. The move was transparent, and thus easy enough for Ria to duck. Her move put her into a crouched position, and she launched herself, landing a shoulder into the man’s gut, pushing him to the ground.

Using his legs, he tossed Ria off of him and over his head, and both Gaidin came up to their feet and turned to face one another once more. This time, Ria didn’t hesitate as she closed distance and fainted a swing. As the man moved to block the swing, Ria grabbed his wrist as she moved one leg behind his and pushed. The man’s mass made it a more challenging move than Ria was used to, but he went down. He grappled with her to pull her with him.

Behind her, Ria didn’t see Malina wave another Gaidin forward. This one closed the distance and grabbed Ria by the shoulders, but she heard the approaching footsteps and rolled forward, over the first attacker’s head, and out of the grasp of the second. She rolled out her feet and turned to face her two attackers. The first was a little slow to get up, but he stood shoulder to, well, head with the second attacker. She was closer to Ria in height, but another expert in unarmed combat.

With her sword, Ria had a plethora of moves to counter multiple opponents. Unarmed? Malina advised going for the weaker opponent first. She looked between the two, and while the bigger Gaidin had taken a knock or two, he was by no means weaker. The smaller of her opponents was unknown to Ria, but she doubted she was by any means unskilled.

Going with what she knew, Ria lunged towards the bigger Gaidin, ducking under his hands as he tried to grab her. She got a glancing blow to his midsection, but he didn’t seem phased. As Ria started her offensive on the bigger Gaidin, the smaller one moved to flank her. Instinct told Ria to duck, and she did just in time for a fist to fly over her head, but she wasn’t quick enough to move away from the grappling hands of the man in front of her.

Grabbing her by the shoulders, he pulled her in and delivered a knee to Ria’s midsection. As she was doubled over, he released her, but she knew what was coming and launched herself so that her shoulder hit him in the ribs and drove forward. For a third time that day, both Gaidin were in the dirt, and Ria was rolling to her feet.

The smaller Gaidin charged and tackled Ria from behind, and both went down, tumbling away from each other. Spinning as she got to her feet, Ria saw both opponents were moving towards her. The smaller attacker moved quicker and reached Ria first. As she threw a fist towards Ria’s face, she grabbed the woman’s wrist and pulled, letting the woman’s momentum carry her past Ria. At the last minute, she rotated, wrenching the woman’s arm behind her back so she was facing the larger Gaidin just as he tried to lunge forward.

Ria pushed hard, sending her smaller opponent into the larger one and both stumbled, but kept their feet. Not hesitating, Ria took two quick steps forward and swept the smaller Gaidin’s feet out from under her. As Ria spun around, she then kicked the woman in the back. The larger Gaidin, frustrated with being so tangled up, spun out of the way, letting his teammate fall face first into the dirt.

What became exceedingly clear to Ria was things that worked with multiple opponents with her sword didn’t translate to unarmed. She thought back to times when she watched Malina spar with more than one person, and the one thing that struck her was how Malina seemed to be in more than one place at a time. She never stopped moving, and she constantly used her opponent’s momentum against them, even if Malina was attacking.

The large Gaidin growled as he advanced, his massive hands reaching out to grab at Ria once more. Side stepping as she grabbed his wrist, she spun so that his momentum carried him past. As he slipped by her, she landed a punch to the back of his neck. It wasn’t a hard hit, but he stumbled forward, seemingly stunned.

Malina waved another Gaidin forward, but this time, Ria was prepared. The larger Gaidin was slow to move, but she bet he’d be back in the fight. For now, it was still two on one, but one of the two was much fresher.

The fresher Gaidin charged, but countered when Ria tried to push him past. He pulled her arm behind her, or started to, but Ria twisted out of his grip, kicking him in the knee as she managed to get off to his side. He howled out in pain as he went down, but Ria had no time to celebrate as the female Gaidin was on her with a flurry of punches.

It was all Ria could do to duck, side-step and block the barrage of fists. The woman’s attack was relentless, but it also left her vulnerable as Ria blocked an uppercut with both wrists before gripping the offending fist and yanking the woman forward as she brought a knee up. As the woman doubled over, Ria then brought an elbow down, or tried to when two big hands grabbed her from behind.

The large Gaidin had picked her up, and the former Mistress of Arms was no longer in the Warder Yards, but back on the Citadel walls as a Trolloc raised her over its head to throw her to the ground below. The Void slipped away, and Ria froze.

“HOLD!” Malina barked. The unarmed instructor was not only a great teacher, but an excellent observer. “Put her down Tam. Gently, and back away.” Malina didn’t take her eyes off of Ria’s. “Why don’t you all go take a ten minute break,” she suggested.

Riahana was wide eyed, but she didn’t really see what was going on around her. She’d been off the ground, but was now back on her feet. The hands holding her had let go, and a face appeared in front of hers. She didn’t think, just struck, but found strong hands gripping her wrists.

“Ria. . .come back to me. It’s me. . .It’s Malina. Come back to me, Ria. You’re safe,” Malina crooned in soft, gentle tones. She’d never seen Ria like that before, but she’d seen others when they were in a moment of panic and reliving past horrors.

Everything came back into focus, and Ria was surprised to see Malina face to face with her. A moment later, she realized the woman had a firm hold of her wrists. She blinked and shook her head. “Malina.”

“There you are. Welcome back, Ria,” Malina replied as she let go of the other woman’s wrists. She’d been at the Citadel that day, but didn’t see what happened to Ria. She’d heard about it, though. Who hadn’t?

Offering Ria a warm smile, Malina guided her away from the sparring area, “We lost you for a bit. I don’t think I have to ask where you went.”

Looking to the unarmed instructor, Ria arched a brow, “What do you mean?”

“Tam went to neutralize the threat. . .you. Easiest way to do that is to get you off your feet, or at least it was since he came up behind you. Sent you back to the Citadel, didn’t it?”

Letting go a deep sigh, Ria nodded as she looked away, “It did. I froze.”

“Not to be unexpected, and it can be overcome. It will take some effort on your part, and I suggest you start by talking about it. You don’t have to talk to everyone. . .just those you trust. When you feel everything close in, or you find yourself back there on that day, talk to someone. . .perhaps Gareth or another Yellow who specializes in counselling,” Malina suggested.

The pair had been walking slowly, and Malina let Ria guide where they went. She wasn’t surprised to find them heading towards the Tower. As they stepped into the corridor that ran along the Yellow Ajah, Ria stopped, “Not sure how easy that will be for me.”

Malina moved so she was standing in front of the other Gaidin, “Think about what you just said, and what it is you do every day. Talking should be easier than fighting Shadow, Ria. I know you are stubborn, but you asked me to help you avoid a situation like what happened at the Citadel. It’s not just the physical exercises that are important, but the mental and emotional ones, as well. I can’t make you run the Yards, but I can tell you to do it because it will make you a stronger, better fighter. This is no different.

“The Void is an old friend to you, I know, but this pulled you from it in a split second. The best way to prevent that from happening in the real world is facing what already happened to you and how it impacted you not just physically, but emotionally too,” Malina finished.

Ria couldn’t bring herself to meet Malina’s gaze, but gave a slight nod.

“I’ll take that as a yes. Think you can find your way back to your quarters?” Malina asked with a smirk.

Finally looking to her unarmed instructor, Ria offered a weak smile, “I’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, you will be,” she agreed.

Ria put one foot in front of the other and left Malina in the hallway. The Gaidin had a lot to think about.
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