In the Yard

4th Domusdae, the 27th day of the month of Semens (Sem), the 3672nd year of Salvation's Landing

The guys up ahead outpaced Reglin, Asha, Lina, and Lim. The four of them took a bit of a more leisurely pace, though Reglin did feel a bit anxious to get in the yard and meet steel with his fellow guards. He hadn’t had a chance to do anything of the like since the artifact of his had come into his possession. Which reminded him. He really should get together with Tabitha for consulting on his next move with the scroll.

Those quick meander thoughts went away quickly as he listened in to the conversation going on. It was mostly Lim boasting of his forays in battle and they made him the most formidable of the bunch in the yard this evening. The girls took that as obvious boasting, but then started to talk amongst themselves of who they thought would be the favorite. Reglin was more than willing to let the ladies discuss this while he walked close to Asha, their hips occasionally bumping in stride. When they did, Asha’s eyes always come over to find his, if even for just a moment, knowing full well what Reglin was doing.

Reglin took a moment to look at Lina. She really was a nice to look at with her sometimes blonde, sometimes brown hair. The looks she gave with those green eyes said that she might know a few things that could surprise someone like Reglin. As he had thought before, she was not gorgeous, but there was something about her that drew Reglin’s eyes.

These thoughts made Reglin reflect on himself. It seemed as of late, perhaps coinciding with the gaining of the Affection artifact, that Reglin could always find something in a woman that attracted him. Like he looked at them through new eyes.

That bit of introspection was interesting, but they were coming to the practice yard now and it was time to prepare himself mentally for what was to come. He leaned over to speak softly into Asha’s ear, “I’m not sure how long this will take. Truthfully, you don’t have to stay for all of it. I wouldn’t want you to get bored.” He snuck an inconspicuous little nibble on her earlobe with no one watching, eliciting a giggle from Asha.

She looked sideways up at Reglin with an arched brow, “Oh, will we get to see you change into different attire? If that’s the case, I think I would like to stay.” She didn’t say that too quietly, so Lina easily heard it as well. A wide smile bloomed at the notion, “Oh? Five fit men dressing and undressing for our eyes? I don’t think there’s much I have to do. I think we can stay.” She waggled her brows at Reglin, but he noticed the slightest of a touch on Lim’s arm from her.

Reglin smiled at that, knowing that the woman was more than likely making Lim’s evening with that bit of attention. He wondered if it was just a passing fancy, or if there could be something to that. He found the thought of it made him smile inside.

Reglin gave Asha’s livery-covered hip a subtle brush with his hand and bowed his head to the girls, “See you ladies in a bit then…” He and Lim both then headed over to the practice armory.

The armory was a simple, somewhat smallish stone building that was usually locked up. Inside were a whole arsenal of weapons of the practice variety. Most of the armor that was used was a reinforced padded leather. If someone wanted to familiarize themselves with a new suit or weapon, that could be accommodated as well.

Reglin saw Lim grab a full complement of practice leathers, a blunted long sword, and a wooden kite shield. Your typical wears for a man at arms he thought as he grabbed his own set of leathers but went over to the arsenal. Given his own personal weapon, he picked up a two-handed sword. A five-foot dulled blade, but otherwise pretty well crafted. But he felt the desire to try something different this evening as well. He picked up a broad sword and then eyed the shields. However, his eyes slid over them and landed on notched dagger, designed for disarming. He picked up the specialized weapon and a looked at it. Just like that, he saw men in battles using the weapon to varying effect. It was enough then for him to take it outside with him.

There was a covered grandstand that was only really used on drill days. When drill days came around, the guard staff would go to a minimal crew and the three shifts would send a majority of their members. Them, along with any nobles that wished to match weapons with trained armsmen would have a bit of competition, though unofficially. But it was those grandstands that Asha and Lina headed over to, so they could watch from a safe vantage. And the ladies were looking at Reglin as he came out of the armory with his gear.

He had given them a promise of sorts, so he unlaced all of his shirtlaces and pulled it up and over his head with no hesitation. His hose would keep him modest enough, he thought and so he kicked off his boots and dropped his pants as well. The timing of titters and giggles from the grandstand could not be coincidental, he thought, but kept himself from smiling.

He went about getting geared up, bucking the leathers and what not while his eyes went to the yard. In the yard Nimit and Boll were getting ready to face off. Reglin had heard that Nimit was the quickest of the guards, so he had some notion of what to expect from him. Now Boll on the other hand was a totally different story. The man was stoic and miserly with words, so Reglin was very intent on how he fought.

Nimit was a slimmer man, but not overly. He stood a slight bit taller than Boll, which made him a couple inches shorter than Reglin. Like Lim, he chose the standard kit, going with the sword and shield. The way that he stood on the balls of his feet and hunched his shoulders with his shield, it reminded Reglin of a cat getting ready to pounce.

Boll looked completely disinterested really. Like this was all just necessary. The way he held his sword and shield conveyed that a lack of readiness. Was he really just out there to go through the motions? He was close to his discharge. Maybe that was the case. He took ponderous steps closer to Nimit and they reached out and touched shields, signaling the start.

Nimit began to orbit Boll slowly, seeming to gauge the veteran’s defense. Boll kept track of the nimble guard with hooded eyes, appearing disinterested. Giving little away in the way of telegraphing, Nimit’s jab of his sword came incredibly fast. It was an apparent probing thrust and Boll dealt with it with as little effort as was needed, barely moving his shield, and reaffirming his lack of enthusiasm.

With the first strike out of the way, the two combatants settled into the session. Most of the action came in short bursts, Nimit flowing from one attack into the next. While Boll’s economy of motion made his defense appear effortless.

A couple of minutes in, both men had broken sweats, though it was Nimit that was breathing heavier between the two of them. It seemed to be a misnomer however, as Boll’s parries and blocks began to slow. Nimit scored finally, feinting a strike to the center of Boll’s mass. When the veteran reacted, Nimit twisted his hips, his blunt sword struck home on the inner thigh of Boll’s lead leg.

Boll’s reaction was muted, giving away nothing in his face. Reglin did notice a small favoring in the leg’s step. Nimit must have seen it as well and soon was pressing the attack, changing angles of attack, and trying to get Boll to move. Before long, Boll’s leg buckled as he tried to the ground necessary to counter an attack destined for his flank. With the leg giving way, Nimit pounced, landing another blow. This time the dulled blade thumped into the padded tasset on the outside of Boll’s thigh. When Boll took a few more steps, he grimaced. He immediately raised his sword hand, blade held horizontally, “Yield…” Boll muttered and gave a nod to his opponent.

The two men planted their swords into the yard, approached each other, and grasped each other’s forearms. Reglin couldn’t hear the words that were said, mostly by Nimit obviously, but it concluded with them giving a nod to each and taking up their training swords.

The five guards congregated onto the grass in the yard. Nimit and Boll both were still breathing deeply after their bout. The other three gave them nods and compliments on their performance. Nimit and Boll just gave small nods in gratitude.

Lim looked around with a grin, “So who gets to introduce the pup to how things run ‘round here? You, or me?” the wide guard looked at Halpern. Halpern was close to Reglin in stature, though a bit leaner since the change provided by the Affection Artifact. In response to Lim, Hal gave a vague shrug of the shoulders, “I don’t care one way or the other…”

With the edges of his lips turned down, Lim’s eyes smiled while he shrugged himself, “I s’pose I can show him the ropes then.” He looked over at Reglin then, “Hope you know that I’m not gonna take it easy on you, Goldy… I’m not some undisciplined Clanner, just so you know.”

Reglin thought about that. True, the Clan warriors were not the most disciplined of soldiers, but they were tenacious and almost fearless. But Reglin must have been blessed with battle luck because there were many times in the last five years that he had thought that his time had come. Now he would see it he would need that luck still against one of his colleagues, “Great… This should prove frustrating, I’m sure…” Reglin looked to Boll then, “Does he even know when you land a blow on him?”

The stoic guard gave an amused grunt, “Not until the fifth or so…” Boll looked over at the boulderlike Lim and gave him a shrug when he gave Boll a strangled sound of incredulity, “Not sayin’ you cheat… Just don’ think you feel em.”

‘Great’ Reglin thought to himself, ‘If I am going to win this, I might have to batter on him for a while from the sounds of it.’ With the pairing set, Reglin went over to his small stash of gear and picked up the notched dagger and the broad sword. With the weapons in hand, he turned and looked at Lim. With a jerk of the head toward the sparring area, he just said, “Shall we?”

Lim barked a short laugh, “Yes, let’s!” He banged his own sword on his shield and the two men walked side by side to the shortened grassy area. Turning and facing each other, Lim pushed his shield out toward Reglin and Reglin gave the shield a light punch in acknowledge. And so, they started…

Reglin expected Lim to hit like a bull, so he decided the prudent play was to stay nimble and try to not let the big man get any of those monstrous strikes off. Reglin saw hundreds of opponents equipped similarly in his mind. And dozens that shared characteristics of Lim. It didn’t matter that those fights were not his own, it just mattered that he could call upon those experiences.

Keeping his reach advantage, Reglin circled Lim and jabbed at the shield of his opponent. Lim reacted very little and looked like he was assessing Reglin’s feet and their distances. After some probing attacks at a constant distance, Reglin decided to allow himself to come closer. It was less than half a foot, but it was close enough to bring Lim out of his defensive shell.

When the stabbing strike connected soundly with Lim’s shield, he responded with a straight stab of his own. If nothing was done, the attack would strike in the belly. However, Reglin shifted to his right and twisted, lunging forward. Lowering his right shoulder into Lim’s shield with much more power than was at his disposal less than a week ago, he was able to knock the big man off balance. All the time though, Reglin had kept an eye on Lim’s sword. Using the notched dagger, Reglin parried the blade unnecessarily, but used those notches to grab the blade and pulled back. The result of Lim being knocked back and then pulled forward was his sword arm was overextended. Reglin did not have a way to generate a great amount of power with his sword hand, given that he just used it to shoulder bash the shield, but he had enough accuracy to bring the sword up and into the nerve bundle right above the elbow.

Lim bellowed in pain and his hand opened reflexively, dropping his weapon. That was beneficial to Reglin, no doubt, but he was already reversing his hips and bringing his sword back around. Aiming low, the newest guardsman brought his sword to the outside of Lim’s right leg, about mid-thigh. He knew subconsciously that there was a bundle of nerves there that, when hit just right, would buckle the leg. When the broad sword slammed home as it intended, the result was also as intended. The broad guardsman’s leg gave way and his knee hit the grass.

Reglin was still moving though and pivoted on his right foot in the front. He spun an almost complete circle before coming to a stop behind a grounded Lim. The notched dagger was moving along with his spin and came to rest at the base of that thick neck of Lim’s.

Feeling the pressure of the point on his neck, it took Lim a few moments to recognize all that had just happened. Quickly though, he dropped his head and gave an overexaggerated sigh, “Fuck me…”

A couple of the guards spectating gave wolf whistles in recognition to the quick and decisive ending to the bout, followed by a yell from Hal, “By the Gods assholes, that was pretty!”

Reglin moved back in front of Lim though and offered him a forearm. Giving a disconsolate shake of the head, the big man took the offer and stood up and shook arms. His lips then started to grin, “Damned Goldy… You got some quickness in you, that’s for damned certain. And power. Wasn’t ‘specting that bash of yours. Not with what you laid into it, at least.”

Giving a shrug, Reglin smiled at his partner, “I got lucky… I didn’t expect to get all of those shots in truly. I woulda taken just getting you off balance a bit. But I guess my battle luck still holds…” His smile turned slightly embarrassed. They say that when doing anything, more you do it the slower it seems to happen. That battle moves at a different speed for veterans than it does for green soldiers. It seemed that Reglin had become a grizzled vet in just days thanks to the artifact, because that fight seemed like Lim was moving at practice speed. But no need to tell him that. Lim’s a friend and Reglin wanted his spirits up.

The guys had formed up in their small huddle again with the three others giving Lim grief for losing so quickly and Lim saying that he just wanted to make the young blood didn’t come out of the exercise dejected. Reglin held a small smile at that, but the others weren’t taking that story and laid into him some more. After a minute, they got back to negotiating the next match. With Boll and Nimit still not so fresh given the brevity of Reglin and Lim’s fight, they all decided that Reglin would take on Hal next.

Seeing Hal’s weapon of a polearm, a bill to be exact, Reglin went through his thoughts about how to best deal with it. Halpern must have come from the bill lines to choose that weapon. Especially one on one. Thinking the notched dagger that Reglin had used would be of little use against the head of that weapon, so he decided to go with the great sword he had taken.

Hal smiled sardonically at the weapon change, “That’s all well and good here in the yard, but on the field you ain’t gonna have that option more often as not.”

Giving another shrug, Reglin thought about it. Would it be feasible to bring an assortment of choices? His rigorous physique might be able to make it a workable option, “Perhaps… But maybe I just want to see if I might want to go a different route with my weapons.”

Watching the three guards vacate the area, Hal gave an absentminded nodded, “I guess… But you got yourself a trophy sword that’s more like the one you’re practicing with now. Thinking that things magicked too from the looks of it. I’d be hard-pressed to not want to take into combat were I you…”

Now that the two were alone, Reglin gave a nod and squared up to Hal in salutations. The tall guardsman did the same in return. They smacked weapons, sword to haft lightly and started the match.

Immediately Reglin switched his footwork, going to a left-hand dominant stance. Oddly enough, it didn’t feel that strange to him and he thought it might provide a subtle benefit against a polearm wielder. In the end, it did help, but only a bit. Overall Reglin had too many resources to call on for Hal to overcome him. It might have taken a bit longer than against Lim, but it was not by much.

When the all got back together, Lim looked pleasantly redressed by the outcome, “Got somethin’ to say now Hal, ya shit?” He was grinning and clapped Reglin on the shoulder in congratulations, “Fucking hells, Goldy! Just what in the Gods pricks did you get into out on the Marches? You act like some demon, man!”

Hal, along with the other three all nodded at that, before saying, “Well, I will say this. I think the Day’s shift has their fighter for Drill day.” Boll nodded again more deeply and Lim following suit.

Nimit though wasn’t so quick to give up a chance for himself, “I don’t reckon so just yet boys. I haven’t got to clash with him yet. Sure, he went through you guys easily enough, but that’s not saying much…” He smiled at them all in turn, enjoying getting a dig in on their compatriots.

Barking a surprising laugh, it was Boll that responded, “Haven’t matched up with ‘im m’self. But I can tell he’s as fast as you just from watching…” Reglin was taken aback by the sheer words string together by the cagey veteran.

“And he hits like a mule kicks.” Hal added onto the argument, “I’m sure the two of ya fighting would be fun to watch just for the frenzy of it, but I think he’d beat ya down in the end.” Hal was now inspecting the haft of his bill where Reglin’s sword had scored it with a massive blow. “Surprised this thing held….”

Nimit still didn’t look convinced but decided to not argue his case any further. The sky was now starting to get dark and the fighting was like at an end, so they started to strip down their gear.

It was as Reglin was stripped down shirtless that he looked over to the grandstand. He had been so focused on the fighting that he had lost track of the girls. Standing there in his hose and nothing else, he noticed that they had come down from the stands and were coming closer.

They stopped some twenty yards away though and talked quietly to each other while watching the guards changed over. Giggling and tittering, the looks they were giving him were not lost on Reglin. He did notice that Lina’s eyes drifted over to Lim quite often too though. He looked over at his fellow guard and saw him in a similar state of dress. Shirtless, Lim had a moderate amount of chest hair, but the muscle structure on him was impressive. He looked like a wrestling match between him and a tree would be a hard-fought thing. Maybe Lina appreciated that? He was sure there were women that would. But the poor man’s face was a rough thing to be sure. However, he was a jovial and friendly man, so why not?

The more he thought about the idea of those two becoming something, the more it made him smile inwardly. After getting redressed, Reglin picked up all his gear and took it into the armory and sorted it into the proper spots. The rest of the guards were not far behind.

Being the first out gave Reglin the opportunity to approach Asha and Lina without any friendly interference from the guys, and so he made his way to them.

They watched him approach appraisingly, both women looking like mirror images of each other with one brow arched in their look at him. Reglin felt a bit self-conscious, having just worked out a bit. Regardless of the briefness of the two fights, he had still produced a bit of sweat, “Sorry for the coarse appearance for the two of you ladies…”

Asha broke into a small giggle at that, and Lina smiled widely, “Oh, I’m sure that is far from the last thing someone’s thinking about right now.” Lina gave Reglin a waggle of her brow at that and Asha looked down to the ground while color bloomed in her cheeks. That only lasted a moment before he saw her steel herself and look him resolutely, “She’s not wrong. Watching you move out there did get my mind going to some imaginative places…”

It was Lina’s turn to color at that, taken off guard at Asha’s frankness, “Asha!” She cleared her throat quickly and smiled again, “Though Goldy, I think she hopes you might last a bit longer than those bouts of yours, I’m sure.”

The three of them were laughing at the perverted jokes, some more embarrassed than others. Reglin retorted though, “What if I’m just as effective though? Does the duration matter then?”

More snickers at that while Lina looked thoughtful, “Hmmm… two in two minutes? That would be something, I’m sure. I would give you a pass with that kind of performance.” Asha’s face became of a mask of mortification at that for a moment before her own face took on a thoughtful expression, “Yes… I think that would be more than satisfactory now that I think about it.” He cheeks blossomed once more, “Ummm… Can we head back to the palace? I’d like to get out of this livery at last. I have clothing in the servants’ lockers.”

Reglin could not miss that hint, “Of course. I can go to my room while you do so and try to make myself more presentable.” He gave a courteous bow to Lina and offered his arm to Asha, “A good evening to you, Mistress Lina. You will be okay be escorted back by that pack of miscreants, won’t you?” He smiled widely at her.

Lina beamed at Reglin, teeth showing, “I will be fine. I can handle that bunch. My talk with you still stands though, Goldy. Understand?” Her face took on a serious countenance then.

“And my response is the same, I promise. Take it easy on Lim going back. He’s sensitive under all those muscles.” Reglin said as he started to step away with Asha alongside him.

~This is knowledge for the Reader~

The Affection Multiplier

~Mana: 344 (+165) 509~

~Mana Channels: ~Labiae Passionii (Lips of Passion) free, ~ Corpu Vigorii (Vigorous Body) 100, ~ Uirtau Proelium (Martial Prowess) 100, ~Mensu Lucidae (Bright Mind) 100, ~ Tactu Beatae (Blissful Touch) 100, ~Plurem Amatrixae Normalii (The Normalcy of Many Loves) 500, ~Corpu Libidaem (Lustful Body) 100, ~Corpu Spectabilum (Intimidating Body) 100, ~Mentulae Potencii (Potent Cock) 150

~Tabitha~ Affectionae: 100 Erosii: 88 Libidae: 100 (Effective 42)
~Lim~ A: 42(+10) 52 E: 0 (+2) 2
~Boll~ A: 26 (+7) 33
~Grahm~ A: 33
~Halpern~ A: 13 (+8) 21
~Nimit~ A: 9 (+6) 15
~Day's Shift Guards~ A: (+9)
~Lina~ A: 39 (+5) 44 L: 0 (+3) 3
~Asha~ A: 85 (+5) 90 E: 24 (+3) 27 L: 44 (+16) 60
~Princess Katya~ A: -52
~Maiden Caterina~ A: 18 E: 1 L: 2
~Maiden Gwynfuir~ A: 15
~Maiden Erynna~ A:5
~Lady Wilmyna~ A:17 L: 5
~Maiden Freighla~ A: 11 L: 3
~Lady Falina~ A: 12
~Maiden Deela~ A: 9
~Lady Vidala~ A: 6
~Maid Camilla~ A: 6 L: 4
~Night's Shift Guards~ A: (+6)
~Govren~ A: 2
~Princess Yelena~ A: 66 E: 3
~Maiden Oliyah~ A: 9

Achievement: Attraction Not Needed ~ You have gained over 50 streams of affectionae from someone who has no desire for you (+50 mana)
Achievement: Brothers in Arms ~ You have gain Erosii streams from someone with no desire for you. He has your back (+50 mana)