Sturmrufer
Griffons
New Griffon
"Having fun, are we?"
Posts: 30
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Post by Sturmrufer on Dec 6, 2014 17:04:34 GMT -5
"I would be delighted to help, but what do you need exactly? I can teach you some swordplay and some claw-to-claw combat, but it really depends on what you fighting." Sturm offered. "Why would you be fighting gryphons? Or other ponies, for that matter." He turned to Klepto. "Since you say you're in the "resale" buisness, I was curious as to what or whom you might have come across. Anything of interest?"
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Post by Klepto Moonlit on Dec 14, 2014 17:12:39 GMT -5
Klepto listened carefully to Selenia as she spoke, becoming more confused about this 'mission' she was talking about than anything. "I... I guess?" The thief blinked in puzzled silence before going back to his rubble pile. "I mean, that was kinda a... an unexpected request. Never really 'trained' anyone in anything before..."
"First thing's first," he spoke after tossing aside another damaged item from the pile, "How much time do we got? When's this mission supposed to start?"
Klepto turned his attention to Sturmrufer after the griffon's question about items of interest he may have come across. "Oh, I got a middle-man in Trottingham who does most of the selling. I'm mainly on the acquiring end-a things."
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Post by Selenia on Dec 19, 2014 14:14:25 GMT -5
"Criminals, malcontents, unaffiliated, the works. Point is they won't be looking to make friends with me." Selenia idly waved off Sturm's curiosity. "I just need to know how you generally fight as a species. Information like that could save my life if it comes down to it. If time allows, some simple lessons or sparring would be much appreciated, if only to find the best way to dodge your moves."
"As for you, Klepto," she turned back to the pony, "It's nothing serious, I want to know your tricks of the trade on being sneaky. I'd prefer to avoid confrontation where I can, and your position as one of the best thieves in the business comes from not being the most famous." She rubbed her chin a little at his question. "I'm not sure when I'll be leaving, exactly. It could be in weeks, or it could be in hours. It's up to Red's judgement when the time is right, and there's no second chances. That's why I want to get prepared asap. If your sneaky tricks are trade secrets, you can pitch with the combat. I know you know how to fight, Klepto."
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Sturmrufer
Griffons
New Griffon
"Having fun, are we?"
Posts: 30
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Post by Sturmrufer on Dec 20, 2014 14:16:15 GMT -5
"Alright, I'll help. Where and when do you wish to start? There's a clearing not far from here, with some rubble to act as obstacles. I'm not a normal gryph, so my style is a bit different from most." Sturm questioned, eyeing at Selenia curiously. "I can't help for free, of course. I wouldn't consider us friends just yet. I hope you have some sort of recompense in mind?"
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Post by Klepto Moonlit on Dec 23, 2014 1:19:28 GMT -5
"A few hours? Sheesh. That's... that's hardly anything." For what Selenia seemed to be asking for, having such an uncertain and likely small amount of time was a very tall order. "And even if it's weeks, you're gonna be busy, right? I mean, you're not just gonna drop everything to begin stealth training..."
The thief let out a sigh, taking a moment to gauge Selenia carefully. "Maybe... I'm not sure what you wanted me to do once I got here. I can give you pointers maybe; tell you what I do when I'm tryin' to be unnoticed. But, a lot of its situational. And a lot of its common sense. There's no secret tips or tricks I can just give you and expect them to work. That's why there aren't books written about this sorta thing; because there's no winning formula."
"If you wanna be good at what I do, you gotta have skill and intuition. Those things come with experience, and more than a few hours-worth."
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Post by Selenia on Dec 26, 2014 9:30:55 GMT -5
Selenia scrunched her nose, this wasn't turning out at all how she had hoped. She supposed Klepto's explanation made perfect sense, how a lot of sneaking around relied on instinct and common sense, but he was a professional thief. A lifetime of experience couldn't be conveyed over a few hours or days, but he had to have something he could provide. She wasn't expecting a miracle when she called for him to come to Canterlot, but she was hoping for something a little better than 'I can't help'.
Selenia gently rubbed her temples, "Yes, Klepo, anything would help. Tips, pointers, even equipment you might use, all for the sake of not being seen. If not stealth, then hoof-to-hoof combat is fine, as I said I know you can fight. I know next to nothing about how to go about this professionally and my very life may depend on it soon. I'm just grasping at straws here because I have nowhere else to go, and I'm sorry if I dragged you all the way back to Canterlot for something you can't help with."
"As for you, Sturm. 'Payment' might be a little loose of a term right now," she gestured around to the razed city. "It might just have to be a serious IOU, but I can talk to Red for ideas. You'll get paid somehow, no doubt about it."
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Sturmrufer
Griffons
New Griffon
"Having fun, are we?"
Posts: 30
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Post by Sturmrufer on Dec 31, 2014 15:27:55 GMT -5
Sturm nodded, silently accepting her reply. While he had wished for a bit more substantial answer, he understood the the current situation limited what could be done. "Good, then where do you wish to begin? It would help to tell me what you already are familiar with, for starters."
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Post by Klepto Moonlit on Jan 5, 2015 1:04:54 GMT -5
Klepto grimaced at Selenia's apology, eventually letting out a sigh after several seconds. He could tell she was frustrated by what he had said. At least, she seemed to be. As much as he liked the excuse to scrounge for valuables in the ruins of Canterlot, he did feel bad proving so useless after the invitation. But mostly because this was Selenia.
"Okay okay. First, it would help if I know what exactly this mission is. In fact, that's gonna help more than anything."
"And tell Sturmrufer what you know," he said, nodding towards the griffon. "That'll help me too. But not just fighting stuff. Everything. Tell him everything you know. Cooking, crocheting; I want the whole of it."
The thief paused for a second, thinking to himself. "And your connections. Who do you know and what do they do?"
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Post by Selenia on Jan 7, 2015 12:01:34 GMT -5
Selenia allowed herself a smile as Sturm got started. "I've had extensive physical training with Red, most of it was built to support the magic he was teaching me, but I got the same standard hoof-to-hoof that our guards do." She spun a hoof around on the air, rattling off the details, "I know how to buck and punch, dodge, how to properly take hits that would knock me on my flank. Magic helps with those a lot, but I'm no bar brawler, I'd rather stay out of melee range. Now what I don't know," she pointed at Sturm, "Is how you guys fight. Ponies have hooves, so we go for blunt force. Your claws are no doubt more geared for slashing and the like, you're taught to go for the neck or something, correct?"
She turned back to Klepto. Multitasking like this would be a challenge, but all for the sake of limited time. "There's some details of the mission I can't say simply because I don't know, neither does Red. He's monitoring something, and will yank me out of wherever I may be when he deems the time to be right." In truth, Red wasn't monitoring a thing about the labyrinth, and Selenia would be teleported whenever it started, be it hours, days, or weeks from now, courtesy of her unwitting acceptance of such an arcane link. She hoped telling Klepto and Sturm that Red was running the show would placate them, as the authority a master held with their apprentice would be impossible, not to mention disrespectful to question.
"What I do know is that when this thing starts, I'll be unceremoniously dumped into a place where everyone is dangerous and no one is my friend. There may be ponies, there may not, same goes for griffons, and I won't know what anyone is capable of. I need to cover all my bases because I don't know what to expect, even from the environment. That means picking up my slack on my weaknesses on things I won't be able to dictate, namely the distance of engagement, hence close combat. Failing that, learning how to properly avoid confrontation if I haven't a chance to come out on top was the main reason I asked you here."
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Sturmrufer
Griffons
New Griffon
"Having fun, are we?"
Posts: 30
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Post by Sturmrufer on Jan 9, 2015 20:20:53 GMT -5
"Good, good. And something like that, yes." Sturm answered, lost in thought. He hadn't trained a pony before, or anyone for that matter. He was here to help, though, and help he would provide. "Well, what would you prefer? A sword, or perhaps a mace? Both, of course, have their ups and downs. Maces are more of a blunt force weapon..." Sturm went on to explain some tips and tricks, and how to use the weapon to best of his knowledge. He was humble enough to admit he was far from the best, but by no means was he mediocre. "Anyways, that's the gist of what I can teach you. If you have time, it may be best to practice physically with each of them. Doing's better than listening, eh?"
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Post by Selenia on Jan 25, 2015 10:56:28 GMT -5
(OOC: Sorry you guys had to wait so long on my behalf. In addition, with Selenia needed in Fillydelphia soon and general orders to wrap up all threads, I'm gonna pull some time skip montage-speed shenanigans. I'm really sorry, I dragged y'all in here and you don't even get to do anything fun, just be sure to summarize the gist of what knowledge and/or training you may have imparted to Selenia.)
Selenia idly paced as Klepto seemed to be lost in thought, no doubt drumming up the most useful and practical knowledge stored deep in that sneaky noggin of his. Literally anything would do. Selenia didn't even know how to walk silently with her hooves, let alone the proper methods of sticking to the shadows, hiding in plain sight, presenting a completely unassuming outward appearance, everything stealthy that Klepto undoubtedly knew and exercised readily in his line of work. Meanwhile, she turned her attention back to Sturm, who was happily rattling on concerning combat. She listened intently as he went in-depth about various weapon types, their strengths and drawbacks, their individual threats and weaknesses. He was clearly a fine soldier, and very knowledgable indeed to speak so comfortably about weapons and tactics as though somepony would consider the weather.
"Magic is my primary weapon, and my horn can go for a few mean pokes too. I've never been very partial to actual weapons- forged of steel and iron and the like." She explained to Sturm. "But if I had to pick one, I would probably do well with daggers or a light sword, something to fall back on when my magic literally won't cut it. Alternatively, I could use my magic to swing about the heaviest bludgeons like they were nothing, but then I'd have to carry them. We can go try some out, if you'd like. Canterlot's armory is mostly underground, and a fair portion of the weapon stores survived the sky titan's wrath-" she reassured him. "-and what with the griffons here too, there should be no trouble finding whatever arms and armor we need." She beckoned to her two companions. "C'mon, it's near the military headquarters, the cleanup effort should have the courtyards clear by now."
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Post by Klepto Moonlit on Jan 26, 2015 14:52:24 GMT -5
Klepto remained digging through the ruins of the building while Selenia and Sturmrufer practiced, managing to procure a few items that might fetch him more than a few bits. The way Selenia made it sound, she could be 'poofed' away at any second. Klepto didn't have time to 'teach' her how to be stealthy. Like he had said, she needed time and experience if she wanted to be good at that.
Eventually though, he did manage to come up with an idea. He couldn't give her the skills she needed, but he could teach her an important lesson. That could be done quickly, and if she was smart about it, it may prove even more useful than just learning to be sneaky.
"Do they have practice swords there? The wooden-type?" Klepto asked, following the other two. "Otherwise I'm gonna need some sword-shaped sticks. Think I might've figured out a way to help you, Selenia."
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Sturmrufer
Griffons
New Griffon
"Having fun, are we?"
Posts: 30
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Post by Sturmrufer on Jan 28, 2015 18:48:46 GMT -5
"Yes, of course." Sturm replied as they walked along. "Why? What did you have in mind?" Sturm had already given Selenia an overview of what he knew, and was curious to see what the green pony had to show. Maybe he could learn something as well.
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Post by Selenia on Jan 29, 2015 10:35:25 GMT -5
"Yeah, there are all manner of training implements. It's the Canterlot's military headquarters, after all." She shrugged, "That is, assuming less robust equipment like that survived the battle... But I don't doubt it." She walked along, finally satisfied that things had started to look up. Sturm was more than eager to share what he knew, and Klepto seemed to have his thoughts organized about how to help her. She'd get some useful, if rudimentary training out of the two, as well as whatever useful information they had, and then she'd figure out how to repay them somehow. She'd tell Red and hopefully he'd approve, perhaps even convince him to pay the two from the bottomless royal coffers he had access to in case she didn't come back from the labyrinth. It was a remorseless idea that left a bad taste in her mouth for even thinking about it, considering just how badly Equestria would need those funds to rebuild after the war, but Red gave the impression that her mission was of prime importance to Equestria anyways. Either way, they'd get their due for whatever they could provide, Selenia always paid off her debts.
She was about to ask Klepto what he planned to do with an arsenal of wooden swords when Sturm beat her to the punch. She nodded in kind and looked curiously to Klepto for his answer.
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Post by Klepto Moonlit on Jan 30, 2015 0:25:29 GMT -5
((I'm gonna do a little fast-forwarding unless there's any objections.))
"I'm gonna teach Selenia how I fight," Klepto answered, walking alongside the two. "She already said she's gotten the hoof-to-hoof stuff from the guards, and there are ponies here who'd do a better job than me teachin' her how to use a sword or a bow or whatever. So rather than give her some lesser advice on weapon techinque, I'm gonna give her a lesson in my combat style."
The thief turned his head to speak more directly towards Selenia as they continued. "This'll be something no guard, military instructor, or mage can teach you. Consider it a Klepto-original."
"Alright," Klepto resumed after they were at the armory and had acquired some wooden practice swords. "We're gonna do a little training activity. Grab one of those swords," he instructed Selenia. The earth pony picked one up for himself, trotting over to an open area and indicating for Selenia to follow.
"Nowgh," he spoke through a mouthful of hilt, "Thi' is gonna be a standa'd sparrin' ecksercise. Firs' person to ge' a tap on the ofther wins. We'll star' when I count to ftree." The thief warmed himself up for a moment by trotting in place. Then, without so much as a word, he leaped forward to smack Selenia right across the face with his wooden sword. When he had finished his strike, Klepto spat out his sword and turned back towards the unicorn.
"Did you see what I did there?"
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