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Post by kuruka on Nov 25, 2011 17:03:23 GMT -5
Kuruka went through the motions as well as she could, sensing a little of Percheron's eagerness. The ointment had certainly done its job on her wing and stretching helped her feel so much better. Kuruka progressed rapidly, though she knew she would by no means master her technique for months to come, if not years. A little out of breath, Kuruka landed in front of Percheron for what had to have been the twentieth time. "How was that one?"
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Post by Percheron Razorwing on Nov 26, 2011 18:35:44 GMT -5
"Nice! I think you're ready to move on, but don't forget to practice every day, or you'll lose your edge!" He said, finally taking off into the air gracefully, spreading his wings like a massive eagle as he soared upwards, majestically spinning in the air as he did, feeling the wind currents around him, getting a sense for the breeze, and more of all, enjoying the freedom.
"Alright,first, let's fly up as far as you can without getting tired, or dizzy, so I can see what height is best to practice in," He said, "And then each time you practice, you'll go a little higher, within reason, of course." The stallion smiled at her, oddly enough, it was kind of fun not being the harsh taskmaster he was used to being. A change of pace always was nice, though, he thought.
Landing on a nearby cloud to wait for Kuruka, Percheron tasted his wings, creating sparks with his hooves as they trampled the surface of the cloud in anticipation for the coming flight. Now that he was in the air, his impatience was showing. He felt more free dealing with someone who didn't really know who he was, she had no real expectations of him, and that was refreshing. Much like the morning air. Percheron felt he was breathing in frozen crystals, and breathing out steam, on a normal day he'd be halfway through his morning training routine by now. Though he lamented the loss of the training, he did not regret it.
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Post by kuruka on Dec 1, 2011 21:09:26 GMT -5
Kuruka watched, a little intimidated, as Percheron effortlessly took to the skies and landed on a cloud. The latter action about floored her. Really? Pegasi could walk about on clouds? She'd never tried that before. Feeling a bit like a filly on her birthday, Kuruka lifted off and kept rising, testing the atmosphere with a brief spin here, a sniff of air there. When she started feeling a little dizzy, she lowered herself a bit and turned to her instructor. "I believe this is about my limit." She said, letting herself eye the cloud curiously, wondering what if felt like to walk on one. Percheron seemed impatient to get moving. Kuruka grinned. If flying was so exhilarating that even a seasoned veteran got excited, she couldn't wait to learn more.
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Post by Percheron Razorwing on Dec 2, 2011 14:25:08 GMT -5
"Alright." Percheron hopped from the cloud nimbly and took to the air again, catching up with Kuruka. "Now you just do what comes naturally, just fly around in circles, feel the air, get your wings used to flying, they must have gotten weak from years of no use."
Percheron demonstrated by riding the wind a bit back and letting it carry him off before quickly rising above and diving towards her, then gliding back up again and letting himself fall through the air. "Experiment, try everything you can think of, close your eyes, let the winds carry you."
The feeling of the air on Percheron's body was exhilarating, he seemed completely relaxed and confident when in his element, even going so far as brushing against clouds and making shapes in the air with lightning he carried from them.
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Post by kuruka on Dec 5, 2011 23:09:49 GMT -5
Kuruka fluttered about, directionless for a while before she started to feel the air currents. She then opened her wings completely, holding herself in place until she grew tired. Kuruka then switched to a few figure-eights and found another air current, again holding herself in place until her wings tired. She flew to a cloud and landed, working her muscles once more to train them in the motions Percheron had shown her. When they no longer burned as much, Kuruka lifted off again and found another current, flying against it, making sure her wings were moving correctly. Her shoulders burned, her wings ached, but Kuruka made certain she didn't give up until she was sure she'd ingrained the patterns in her mind so she could practice even when Percheron wasn't there. When she felt satisfied with the difficult stuff, Kuruka gave in to temptation at last. She lifted herself a little higher and dove, holding her wings closed before opening again and lifting upward. She lost control a number of times, but trusted her instinct enough to let it take over. Performing a few rolls and trying to backflip (although it turned out horribly), Kuruka finally ran out of breath and landed on a cloud, taking care not to sit or lay down or even tuck her wings back in.
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Post by Red Charge on Dec 7, 2011 5:30:29 GMT -5
Percheron grinned as he watched Kuruka experiment in the air, sharing her enjoyment. "Very good, looks like you don't really need me for the basic stuff, you got a good grip on them. Now it's time I explained to you about Pegasi elements. As you must have noticed, we Pegasi have just as much magic in us as anypony, we can walk on clouds, manipulate the weather and more."
He began, landing and pacing around Kuruka, maintaining eye contact, "However, every Pegasus has his own affinity to an element. Most common are Rain, Lightning and Wind. More rare are Storm, combining all three, and I have even seen a Pegasus with a Sun element. There even are some Pegasi with Earth Pony elements."
He stretched out his hoof, scratching the surface of the cloud, obtaining a trail of lightning around his hoof as he raised to show it to Kuruka, "My element is lightning, and as such I try to always use it to my advantage in battle. Lightning oriented Pegasi are usually aggressive in their combat style, swift and powerful strikes, where quickness and accuracy is key."
"Wind oriented Pegasi," He continued, "Are usually at home most when in a hurricane or any other condition where there is wind all around them. They enjoy high altitudes and usually fight with powerful, area attacks that can knock away even the sturdiest of Pegasi."
"Rain oriented Pegasi are a bit different," He maintained eye contact with Kuruka, looking for a sign that she related with any of these, "They are very active and very sporadic. They have no definite fighting or flying style, they do what they see fit at any given time. Of course, these are all generalizations, and each pony is very unique, regardless of his elemental affinity." The stallion concluded his explanation, smiling at Kuruka widely. "You lived most of your life as a Zebra, it will be very interesting to see if you have an elemental affinity like other Pegasi."
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Post by kuruka on Dec 11, 2011 5:02:44 GMT -5
Interesting indeed.[/b] Kuruka thought, pondering each warrior-type's methods and trying to see if any fit. What was her fighting style? She was aggressive, once provoked, and prided herself on her accuracy with her spear. The wind element didn't sound too promising. The altitude she'd just discovered she was most comfortable with wasn't all that high and she hated barreling into combat. Even though lightning sounded appealing, if Kuruka was honest with herself, she felt like she clicked best with the rain element. Sure, she was aggressive and accurate, but she was more subtle with these skills and could adapt very well to many situations, even without a strategy. Logically, it made sense, but did it feel right? Kuruka couldn't answer. She looked up at Percheron, curious. "How can one determine which element they have an affinity to?" Thank goodness she had a mentor there. Discovering all of this on her own seemed rather daunting, albeit not impossible. Kuruka knew, however, that she would have never gotten this far in a day without Percheron's help. She'd most certainly have to thank him when she got the chance.
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Post by Red Charge on Dec 11, 2011 5:12:19 GMT -5
"Well, sometimes it just clicks right in. The rarer elements do exist as well, and I doubt there was anyone around to tell them what their element is. Of course there are rare cases of having no particular element at all, though it is usually assumed that means you have not yet discovered what element it is." Percheron hummed to himself as he thought, and then tapped a hoof to his chin.
"Come with me." He said, dropping back down to the ground next to Kuruka's weapon and shield, "Attack me, let's spar. It'll help me, and you, observe your style and determine your element. When fighting, be sure to incorporate flight into it, or you will not be able to tag me."
"Start when you're ready." The stallion said, taking a solid stance.
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Post by kuruka on Dec 12, 2011 22:01:34 GMT -5
Kuruka paused only for a moment at Percheron's challenge to take in his stance and distance from her weapons. Then, she plummeted. Dropping at a break-neck pace to try and pin Percheron long enough to gather her equipment. Once the challenge has been issued, the battle has already begun her mentor had taught her. Kuruka changed her mind at the last minute and rolled to collect her shield and spear. Landing in a rearing stance, spear embraced by both forehooves and shield at her back, Kuruka watched for Percheron's reaction.
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Post by Red Charge on Dec 14, 2011 10:18:35 GMT -5
Percheron stood in place, his shift to his combat stance was almost impossible to notice, he was waiting to observe Kuruka's attack, making sure to pay close attention to her every move.
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Post by kuruka on Jan 10, 2012 20:52:43 GMT -5
Kuruka couldn't see much change in Percheron except the increase of tension here and there. Keeping her wings open for greater power behind her attack, Kuruka jumped towards Percheron, aiming a kick at his left shoulder.
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Post by Red Charge on Jan 10, 2012 21:10:12 GMT -5
Percheron dodged to the side, keeping in mind the length of her spear, and taking to the air, "Follow me! Free your legs!" He said, flying a circle low in the air, "Let's see what your fighting style is REALLY like!" He called to her with a grin.
This was more than interesting now, it was absolutely thrilling. Like the first rookie he got when he was a drill sergeant in the army, it was almost as though he was starting over again on some level, it was brilliant!
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Post by kuruka on Jan 11, 2012 17:35:58 GMT -5
Kuruka snorted. Of course Percheron would take advantage of her weaknesses, this one testing her ability to take off. It was a more solid way of instruction. The fact was, Kuruka felt vulnerable and clumsy in the openness of the sky. She searched for some way to approach her temporary foe that wasn't utterly obvious or predictable. Curse there not being any trees! Kuruka paused and eyed a cloud, a plan forming. Without hesitation, she have herself a good running start, took off, charged, spun a half-attempt kick at Percheron's head, and dove into the nearest cloud.
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Post by Red Charge on Jan 11, 2012 17:41:34 GMT -5
Percheron snickered as Kuruka went into the cloud, sending it a small buck. The grounded mare forgot that one could force a lightning out of the cloud at any moment. How surprised she would be to find that she is suddenly shocked.
Of course Percheron only kicked it lightly, not enough for a jolt that would send her falling, but enough to startle her with a zap. "Recklessness..." Percheron counted, moving away from the cloud to avoid any possible counter attack. "
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Post by kuruka on Jan 11, 2012 18:21:01 GMT -5
Kuruka yelped, popping out of the cloud and rubbing her flank. She grumbled at herself for forgetting Percheron's abilities. What was she? An untested filly? Great, and there went her spear, stuck in the frozen ground a couple hundred feet below. Had this been a real duel, she'd be long gone by now. The only alternativeshe had now was to turn it into a sheer fistfight
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