[Viskyia Crow]

Faulto watched as Rhargn moved through his exercises and nodded once more. “Better, young man. Much much better. You are still moving a bit like a puppet on a string, like you’re uncertain, but we fix that, no? Each morning you will be running through these patterns as a warm up, blindfolded, with your awareness in your belly like I showed you. You must change your entire way of moving. It’s not easy, not easy at all. But it must come in every aspect of your life so your mace will improve. Fluid smooth motions. Yes… Better.” The priest said, encouragingly. After Rhargn was done, Faulto removed his sash from around Rhargn’s eyes and replaced it around his waist. He studied the student and then stepped back.

“Now, before we begin this next phase, I need you to begin practicing something else. Some of this will be a discussion, but there’s no use for you standing like a log while we talk. I want you to also, along with changing the way your body moves, change the way your body breathes. Ever watched a singer pelt out a tune? The best ones take breath deep into their lungs, filling up the entire cavity. Most other people just breath from the top and don’t bother taking a full breath. Cause of that, most people are shallow breathers, and don’t have much wind. You have that great huge torso. You have the potential for a lot of wind. Wind means strength and force. It means endurance. If you can breathe, you can move. I want you to start breathing, deeply, from all of your lungs. Fill your torso with air, and use all of it. I want you to practice this while we work on your enemies.”

The priest watched him breath for a few brief moments, adding the odd ‘deeper’ or ‘let your ribs flex’. This was strange, and new. But it should have been evident to the big man that once he figured out how to breathe, much of his other physical issues in life would be more easily sorted out.

“As I have said, we will go through and examine the enemy one at a time, so we are not unawares when fighting a new foe.” The priest’s eyes lost their focus for a moment, and the air shimmered in front of Rhargn as the little old man stepped aside. In a matter of an instant, a snarling orc shimmered into being, the illusion incredibly detailed as the beast stood there, jaws agape, murder in its eyes. Faulto always started out with Orcs. It was the perverse little shock factor he always enjoyed seeing in his students eyes.

“Now… tell me what you see. Tell me this orc’s strengths and weaknesses. How does it move? How does it see? We start with these creatures because they are the most limited in their movements and their flaws are obvious.” Faulto said, somewhat pleased by his students immediate reaction.