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[1/Network]

We have taken a vote among all the elementals on board the Chalice and have agreed that one day per week of our CQC training shall be opened up to the ship as a whole and modified to accommodate those who are of a size closer to the baseline. The first hour shall be conditioning, the second technical practice and the third sparring. Expect practice with unarmed techniques and portable weapons such as sticks and knives. We owe thanks to Madeline Caine for helping to pioneer and test these modifications. I do hope I will see you there!

[2]

Although the elementals have indeed opened up their practice, they're still running through routines that could make Olympic athletes jealous. By the first hour, sweat stains the mats they've laid out and the setting sun is giving the room an orange glow. They've opened the windows to get fresh air in, which might be exactly what you want to get if you're not used to this kindof thing.

When the second hour comes around, Nikolai chooses the largest of his fellow elementals for demonstration purposes. Large as he is to most, he's dwarfed by his practice partner. Yet by dropping underneath her, he can hurl her over his shoulder or drive her backwards, like a house dynamited at its foundations. With a chuckle and some colorful metaphors he also explains the cringe inducing potential consequences of loading a 350 pound elemental on the top your head and thus your neck while practicing. The message therein: do not do it.

And for the third, they pair off, wrestling, strongarming each other into locks and strangles, kickboxing, striking each other with sticks, lashing out and tying each other up with ropes...They don't seem to make much distinction between the different types of combat and one easily blends into the other. They may encounter any of them, after all. Join in? Introduce them to the traditional pig wrestling of your homeland? Dip your toe in the pond by choosing the older but wily Nikolai? Dive straight in the deep end full of sharks by challenging ~~Only One Kenobi~~ Darius?

[3]

He's not getting any younger, especially around the joints and a little of the strong stuff helps him take the edge off of roughhousing with the young bucks. And so, having showered and rubbed Ben Gay on himself in a classic old person move, he hits the bar and asks for the house special.

[4/network/private to Lowe Gear]

Greetings to you, Lowe Gear. I am Nikolai Djerassi of Clan Goliath Scorpion. It seems Clan Wolf is quite pleased with your assistance in the creation of the Verfolger omnimech. As well your name has been recommended to me for a task: I require the assistance of an expert in Earth Sphere technology in the creation of a vehicle that can improve the survivability of an armored Elemental closing with an Earth Sphere mech on open terrain. The design could be based on the existing APC designs which have been around for centuries, though with heavy modifications and a semi-open cab to allow the trooper to exit in their armor.

I hope to hear back from you soon.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"The human body is a machine. It must be regularly maintained."

Noone knows this better than the elementals, who have been gifted with superior 'machines' but consequently must put in even more effort into them. He watches her struggle for a minute to make sure she isn't being lazy. No, she's merely incompetent. He can deal with that.

"You are permitted to skip the warmup." Warmup?! "However I will expect you to run through these exercises on your own time." He looks around the room to preemptively shoot down any grumbles.

That was a warmup...

[Despite looking not very happy with herself, Texotic will just patiently wait until anyone wants to spar her.

Which considering the performance so far will go splendidly and without any hilarious incidents I am sure.]

"You are not permitted to skip technique practice though." He motions her over. A little carrot after all that stick might do her good. "Now throw me as shown."

[How hard can it be? Grab the Elemental dude and...

Throw? No, nothing happens. Not even a budge.]

Hrmm!

[At least her grip is tight. And gets stronger from frustration.]

He stands there as if all that was pushing or pulling him was a gentle breeze.

"You feel as if you could fall over at any moment, quiaff?" He says, remembering the hard time she had with the conditioning.

No, it is not that!

[More fruitless struggling.]

You are just... too heavy, that is all.

[Nope, Texotic is visibly worn out. You'd expect alien conquerors to be in better physical shape.]

This girl, he thinks, is as childish as a Jade Falcon in complaining about 'fairness' in combat. But then, she is a child in her relationship to her new body. More excuse than the Falcons, anyway.

"Oh, how could I forget! I am sure your enemies will be sure to not send anyone too big against you. They are such honorable foes, after all. But perhaps you could humor my wild speculations and drop underneath my center of gravity? You know, just in ca-"

If she does as he says, he won't get a chance to finish that last bit of sarcasm.

Hnnngh!

[Yeah, time for an interruption. Thanks, physics - going low is the key to a successful throw!]

I'm doing this. Take tha...

[And then they both collapse to the side in an uncontrolled heap.]

Nikolai hits the floor with a rather dramatically loud crash. Oh no, is he dead?! Did you start your second month on the Chalice by killing a senior citizen? Do the clanners hate you now or does this make you their new leader?

All these might be the kinds of things you think if you're very naive about the human body and Nikolai's love of pranks.

Uhhh.... what is going on...

[It takes Texotic a second to regain her senses fully. But once she more-or-less collects herself up...]

...

Hey. Hey! Answer me!

And he does, by sweeping her over with his legs, assisted by a grip.

"Better! But remember not to assume your enemy is neutralized until you have made completely sure."

A-aah?!

[Didn't expect the sweep at all, falling down with a thud.]

You were... not supposed to die from my attack!

He stands and crosses his arms, advancing on her again. "'Not supposed to' 'too heavy' 'caught me by surprise'... you sound like a Jade Falcon or Steel Viper. You are training for war, not a game. Now improvise."

[Improvise? Very well. As soon as you finish, you have a pair of hands reaching out for your throat.]

Ah, there it is! Normally one would use the extension of the arms in that position to lock out the elbow, but Nikolai decides to reward the effort. Her grip's remarkably strong for a baseline body she's still getting used to, so he has to peel the grip around his throat off by leveraging the pads of each of her thumbs back with both hands, then springing backwards. But that should give her room enough to get up.

"That is the spirit!"

[As Nicolai springs back, Texotic continues with the assault.]

Aaargh!

[She pounces at him like a wild animal, getting up surprisingly quickly. And just as quickly, she stops before any further contact is made, stumbling a bit but not falling.]

No.
That's not... right.

Nikolai stops mid-sprawl, and gets up slowly, rather puzzled.

"What is not right?"

I acted with lethal intent. It overwhelmed me... against a human.

"Did you think you would hurt me? Or that you would only be fighting your own kind on this ship?"

He has to wonder about that second part. Maybe she feels apprehensive about being put in the position of killing members of the same species she left her people to protect? Well, she'll have to get over it eventually, he thinks. Better in a controlled environment than where it can get them really killed.

Fighting my enemies is one thing, whether they are human or Over Being. But this is supposed to be a "training".

He smiles and spreads his arms out as if to say 'see? no scratches'.

"Your caution is good, but worry not. It is very unlikely you will hurt me here. It would be prudent to be careful when sparring with other freeborn or the aerospace pilots though."

Indeed, the small, large headed aerospace pilot phenotype seems ill suited for this kind of thing, but they're in there too, mixing it up.

You cannot be sure what I am capable of. I am not sure myself. I'm not a human, after all.

[Texotic seems genuinely worried that her hands will pummel you - or anyone else for that matter, into bloody pieces of meat. Truly, that'd be a sight to behold.]

He wonders if he should show her the marks on his shoulders and wrists from dancing the scars so many times, recite his codex. But he left such bragging behind when he stepped down from the khanship.

"Texotic...Your body might have hidden potential but right now it is very weak. But even if it were a danger to me...I am a teacher. I do not know how it works in your society, but where I am from, the instructor must accept that the student's clumsiness with their new weapon...whether it be a rifle, battle armor, a mech or in your case, a body...may hurt you. It is simply a hazard of the job."

He gives her a somewhat stony but still present smile, the kind he uses when encouraging a cadet to climb into their armor, mech or fighter for the first time.

Edited 2013-07-20 13:31 (UTC)

A hazard that may as well end up killing you.

...

Very well. But I will focus on not losing control first and foremost. I came to this planet to save it, not cause more misery.

"Where I will be just as dead as if you were a sibbie handling a PPC for the first time."

There's a beep as technical practice ends and it's time to spar.

"What makes you think your body has hidden abilities?"

Like this one.

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