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RP: Elysia [Elysia Novus] Barracks - Day 2

Zakalwe

Zakalwe

Inactive Member
The next morning, at precisely 6:55, a almost deafening blast of sound filled the barracks followed by the artificially amplified voice of Nereal, "Alright brothers and sisters in arms it's time to rise and have an hour of pre-breakfast exercise before ... you work it out. I'm sure you'll be glad to hear that your comrades who did not succeed the race have been improving themselves with five hours of exercise already this morning. Except for Infantry-woman Rerael - it was decided that she needed a little more practise finding her way home." The voice ended. What they didn't know that Rerael had been found over twenty miles away from the installation close to tears after getting well and truly lost. After comforting her a little Nerael had given her a weeks works of supplies in a backpack and dropped her three days away by foot from the installation.

Outside in the courtyard thirty Elysian Infantry men and women were doing press ups and looking truly exhausted. Having between six and four hours sleep followed by five hours of exercise with knowledge that there would be another hour to come - and all of this after a twenty mile run - such a reaction was to be expected.

"I think we'll start with fifty star-jumps. And match the same speed as everyone else." Nerael called from where he was working out with everyone else - as he had been doing for the last five hours.
 
Schuyler rolled, quite literally out of bed, before getting dressed and ready for formation outside. He didnt necessarily mind the work, but he was still dog tired from the other day.

He still didnt intend to give anything up to this man however, he would do all that was asked and more.
 
After the fifty star-jumps there were thirty sit-ups, then fifty split jumps, then ten minutes of stretching, then sixty scissor kicks and then another ten minutes of an exercise that looked something like Tai Chi (if any of them had had any idea of what that had) - done through emulation of the actions of Nereal. Twenty press ups finished the first half hour of exercise.

Throughout this Nerael enforced his rule of everyone going at the same speed through shouts and threats - while himself keeping up with the exercises perfectly. And noting who would be requiring extra exercise of course.
 
Schuyler thought for a second between exercises about what this would do for all of them. Yeah it would make them stronger, but a weight room would do that even better. Or a hard day in the field.

Either way, these exercises werent terribly hard, they were just a cardio type exercise, and they had just done 25 miles the day before.
 
After another twenty minutes of generic, gruelling and co-ordinated exercises Nerael paused at the apex of his push-up and yelled at his cadets, "And now for something a little special for the last ten minutes."

With a grunt he moved himself smoothly into a handstand position and began to do vertical unsupported push-ups - looking around to ensure that everyone else at least tried. And of course making a mental note of those who didn't and those who failed. He wasn't entirely certain which was worse.

After thirty minutes he left himself in fully extended handstand form - legs straight up in the air, as poised as any gymnast and yelled (again) at the soldiers, "Alright, before breakfast you're going to need to clean yourselves up. Go get showered. Any funny business and I'll show your my comedian act."

The showers were adjacent to the barracks and consisted of a single large communal showering area - there was no segregation between men and women given Elysia's rather lax morals over nudity. The walls had nozzles on them which sprayed hot water with soap already added.
 
Schuyler attempted, failed, and continued to attemp to perform a decent hand stand. He had the strength, that wasnt the issue. It was the fact that he didnt have the balance to be upside down like that. He never did it as a kid, so it was pretty much a new concept to him.

He couldnt notice how good looking some of the female recruits were without their clothing. He did remember what Nereal had said though, and made no attempt at any of them.

He finished his shower quickly, and dressed in the proper uniform before heading out towards the cafeteria. Any food was welcomed at this point. His stomach had started to think his throat had been cut.
 
In the mess Nerael was seated - looking immacualte and dry in his uniform which was pristine. Most of the other inhabitants of the facilities were already seated, eating and talking quietly. He didn't allow anyone to queue up for their food until everyone had arrived - back handed to the floor one cadet that tried - and then sent another in to force everyone out of the showers with the warning that Nerael would be in soon if they didn't hurry.

When everyone did arrive Nerael barked at them, "The food we serve here is not your average civilian food. It's specially processed to contain high levels of carbohydrates, proteins, amino-acids, glutamine, casomorphin, calcium alpha-ketoglutarate, conjugated linoleic acid and the full range of vitamins. You've also got Calcium, Chlorine, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Sodium and sulfur, Chromium, Cobalat, Copper, Flurine, Iodine, Iron, Manganese, Molbybdenum, Selenium, Nickel and Zinc - all in digestible forms. In addition to this we have some low grade anabolic steroids and chemical messengers to convince your brain it's the finest thing you've ever tasted. Do not have second portions. The foods tried and tested and - with the right training - will help you become true soldiers. Just don't become like a Nepleslian Body-builder on me or I will personally break your neck. You will not become muscle-bound. Got it?"

There was a shout of affirmation as Nerael glowered at them.

The mess system worked simply as the soldier would go up to the servers (who were on rotation) behind their counters who would give them a slab of the food - which was in composition much like brownie's. Their were knives at the end of the line - no forks.

Today the food tasted similar to roast beef. Sublime roast beef.
 
The food was surprisingly good, but not very filling.

It did however make him feel better again, as some of the chemical compounds and enzymes ran rampant through his body trying to replenish some of the many deficiencies Schuyler's body had accumulated.

Schuyler didnt plan on becoming muscle bound, but he was by no means the smallest person there. He figured the stronger he was, the better, regardless of size. He wasnt too concerned though, It didnt look like he would be getting very large with the amoutn of exercise they were doing.

He finished rather quickly, and wished that he could go and get seconds...but he remembered Nerael's warning, so he stayed put. He instead sat and wondered what the next challenge would be.
 
As the last recruit finished his meal, a tall, lanky Elysian woman - her build and wings made it somewhat difficult to determine if she was Plebeian and Patrician; she might have been a particularly well-built Plebeian, or a smaller-than-normal Patrician. It actually mattered very little. She was dressed in a la'khas, cerulean blue in coloration, with white sok'h'tohs about her shoulders. At the right hip, there was a hippeis xiphos, which perhaps gave hint to her particular species...

...but not enough to be sure. She spared a moment to whisper a comment to Nereal, then addressed the recruits.

"Look sharp, younglings. I am Hikael, and I will be your instructor in aspis, xiphos, and phaelaes." She waited for the recruits to arrange themselves, narrowing her eyes sharply at the stragglers (a backward comment to Nereal "...they've a long way to go..."), then speaking to them again. "Today we will begin study of the basic motions and defensive maneuvers of the peltast xiphos. We will begin in four minutes. Please assemble yourselves outside."

As the recruits scrambled off, she spared a moment to speak with Nereal. "How are they? Do we have promising ones? Stragglers?"
 
"None which show any promise so far - none that could keep up with me on a leisurely 20 mile run, and none that could manage a simple ten minutes of vertical press ups. Their are no obvious trouble makers - except for one who's a little too fond of being related to a human," Nerael pointed at Schuyler, "As for stragglers, thirty of them didn't finish the run in near decent time, and one is currently on relocation punishment for being hideously lost."

Nerael paused for a moment before speaking in a rather manner of fact manner, "You wouldn't mind if I came along with the session would you? I'd never miss an opportunity to be tutored by the great Hikael." He grinned wickedly, although he was only half joking.
 
"Well, Nerael. It was their first day. The ones who failed to complete the run in time, certainly, must be dealt with. And one who failed to find her way back should probably be dropped without food or water twenty miles from camp and given a faulty compass."

A light grin. "But the ones who managed, at least, to finish in reasonable time frames clearly can be expected to show some fascinating physical prowess."

She waited a full four minutes before making for the outside. If any slacking recruit had failed to fall into order, he had just volunteered himself for a good bit of public humiliation. If noone did, well... the one who had such pride in his tainting humanity could volunteer.

"Come if you will, Nerael. It can't hurt to have a second hand that actually know what end of the blade to hold."
 
As Schuyler walked past this newcomer and Nereal he caught small snippets of the conversation. "None show promise..." "Too fond of being related to a human..."

That was about all he could catch through the noise, before he made it to the outside. He lined up, and did so correctly, he knew what happened if you screwed up in front of Nereal, and he imagined that this new person would be about the same.

He would show Nereal his worth, and he would do it with pride in who he was. There was nothing that would change that simple fact. He liked being who he was, and didnt want to be anyone else.
 
Hikael strode out to inspect the lined recruits, and found no glaring errors in their lineup. Shortly after she arrived, a subdued-looking pair of Plebieans rolled out a rack of short wooden blades balanced and crafted to replicate the peltast xiphos. This was positioned some ten feet off from the recruits, and Hikael stood forward to address them.

"In modern combat, some would say there is no use to the arts of xiphos and phaelaes. That, younglings, is because they have never once actually seen an Elysian fight. Indeed, one would also assume one who said that had never seen a Yamataian fight, they as well demonstrate remarkable prowess with blades." She crossed her arms. "Today, we learn simple defensive maneuvers with a simple infantry blade, and if you prove to be a talented class, we learn as well simple offensive maneuvers. I assure you, I will be patient and forgiving of mistakes. And I assure you as well, when I've finished with you, every one of you will be able to stand toe to toe with a Ketsurui samurai, and live to tell the tale."

She stepped off to the rack, hefted a pair of the wooden swords, turned back to the class. "Aetius. If you would aid me in my first demonstration..." She tossed him the blade lightly. She didn't even wait for him to catch - or not catch - the weapon. "Attack me. Try to break my guard."
 
Schuyler grabbed the blade from the air, making sure to catch the "grip" on it.

He knew that he would probably be best off if he didnt just act like a humptysquat retard and try to bash her over the head. It probably wouldnt work, and it would leave him very exposed for her to beat the crap out of him.

He decided to try and feint in and hit some of the different angles that he saw. Obviously with a bladed weapon, you wanted to do some damage to either disable or severly injure the other person. That meant ankles, chest and abdomen, head and neck. Arm wounds would not be such a great blow, but legs would immobilize.

He swept the blade low, lunging slightly but keeping on his toes so that he could evade, or attempt to evade the follow up strike.

Schuyler had horsed around when he was younger of course, using sticks and the like as swords on the farm. He knew that if you exposed yourself, or that if you let your self become unguarded in a particular spot, it was very easy to find and exploit that weakness. It was however very long ago for him, and he was far out of practice. He knew he would be nursing a few bruises later, but hoped to keep that number low.
 
Watched Schuyler's motions idly, not moving until his blade was nearly upon her, and then....

CRACK!

The wooden dowel swung in a rapid arc to strike the underside of his wrist, connecting with the hilt of his blade and sending vicious vibrations through hand and 'sword'. She looked thoroughly unimpressed, though that was her usual look when teaching people. Hikael had been denied the right to active duty as she was more valuable teaching; and she cursed her talent endlessly because of this.

But then, smiled at Schuyler's failed attack. "Ah, I like you, Aetius. Put a bit of thought into your assault. Most recruits get some ill-concieved idea to try to disarm me."

She motioned for him to step back a bit. "Now, your footwork betrayed everything. When one makes a lunge like that, the hips can tell you where they'll go. If, as was the case with Aetius - they do no use their hips to guide the blow, they will be easily reprimanded with a simple pivoting motion. Strike at me again, Aetius. This time don't lunge - step. Pivot. Don't ever put yourself off-center."
 
Schuyler winced in pain, that had hurt, and not just a little. It hurt one hell of a lot. He managed to hang on to the sword, but just barely.

He stepped back as told, and then when she was finished explaining what she wanted him to do, followed the command.

He stepped forward rather deliberately, feinting quickly for a chest blow, before changing his attack completely with his elbow, and bringing it around for a knee strike. His left hand was up at his chest, ready to help counter, or catch, a blow.

He had a foreboding feeling, mostly in his wrist as he did this, but it was inevitable that he would get hit again.
 
Hikael caught the wooden dowel with a backward stroke, knocking the blade's course outward, leaving his torso quite open. She did not offer a reprimanding strike this time, however, deeming that he had caught on to the basic premise quickly enough as to render it unnecessary. She smiled, lowered the blade.

"Very good. I may see Aetius again for officer training." She directed him again to draw back, addressing the assembled recruits. "Pair off. I'll be demonstrating maneuvers with Aetius; you will practice these maneuvers. Once we have finished demonstration, I will inspect your form. If I find that you are failing to comprehend these very basic techniques, I will turn you over for private training with Nerael, as a remedial environment for swordplay and a tongue like molten steel will do you more good than merely watching me."

She then proceeded to demonstrate more concrete maneuvers with Aetius, correcting his methods, especially his footwork, constantly ("...the blade isn't your weapon, it is simply an extension to your arm. Rely on your shuffle, not your reach..."). She began with a set of basic offensive maneuvers - twelve, all told - and another twelve basic defensive maneuvers to counter them.

And she set the assembled recruits to practice...
 
While Schuyler enjoyed the compliment, he knew that it would not be easy, and the if he slacked off at all, he might as well roll over and play dead. He stepped backwards again, and readied himself to demonstrate with Hikael.

He winced slightly at the thought of what Nereal would do, if a recruit were sent to him.

Schuyler attempted to pay attention to everything that Hikael was telling him, but having been used to bad habits, it was hard for him to change what he was doing. He continued to check himself in the act of an attempted attack, or defense for something he might be doing wrong, and slowly noticed that he was making fewer mistakes.
 
Hikael continued the rather harsh, relentless drilling for nearly six hours before allowing the recruits a moment's respite. During this time, she spent some twenty minutes offering personal aid to a few of the recruits she deemed to be lagging (personal aid seemed to involve a good bit of cracking and bruising - Hikael had learned through pain, and so too would her students). This gave some time to rest for the rest, before she called them to order again.

"By and large, I am happy with your progress. However, I have you for another four hours, and we will move a bit further on in this lesson than I originally intended. Aetius, if you would join me again, please..." She lowered her blade. "...we will learn a few more specialized maneuvers - counters, in volta form. Attempt a strike on me, please, Aetius - first, fifth, or seventh form, whichever you feel strongest with."

She set a foot back into a gently balanced stance, preparing to demonstrate the first of the voltas.
 
Schuyler chose a light stance, swaying lightly to balance his weight. He stepped forward quickly, using a lightning fast upward strike directed at the chest.

He chose this attack because he could easily just twist his body and bring the blade back down on the opposite side of her body, allowing for a very fast follow up with a very small degree of himself exposed while he did so.

He was intent on learning, but more importantly, he wanted to be the best. He still had something to prove to Nereal, to Hikeal, and to most, if not all of the recruits. He may be the proverbial half breed, but that did not mean he was weaker. That is exactly what he planned to prove to them all.
 
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