K E E P i t **S I M P L E** (Shade/Kasparr)

[Sivoncé™]

These hills, once rolling green and busy with the scurryings and wanderings of prey, looked like the place of the world's funeral. Fog and mist surrounded them like hands and fingers, waiting to strangle the last breath of life from these Yozoran territories.
But life fought back.
A muscular, but not fully grown, wolf made his way through these shadows. Daylight flickered in through the obscured scenery in narrow, yellow shafts, giving the adolescent some sort of navigationing help. But he'd been training for a little bit, so he knew the territories pretty well, at least. Finally, he came to a stop at the bottom of one of the hills and looked around, eyes narrowed as he tried to search the clouded lands.
Kasparr sighed softly and leaned against a charred tree trunk, eyes still flickering around and looking for his teacher. It's going to be hard to practice in these conditions....but I guess it is a valuable experiance. Still, I'll be much happier when this all evaporates -- it's kind of eerie. Okay, it is supremely eerie. Yozorans are sneaky...but not eerie!

[.Rabid Lycan.]

Despite his mishap with the flaming tree branch at the Moonless Meeting, Shade pressed forward, fog curling around his ankles as he headed deeper into the blackened forest.
Continuing onward, Shade suddenly stumbled, his paws unknowingly catching on a branch somewhere in the smoky depths. Even though he managed to catch himself before he fell be leaning against the trunk of a tree, a wince of pain shot through his body when he moved quickly. He had suffered burns along the side of his face, his left flank, and his left shoulder. And even though they had medical juices and cobwebs pasted on them, he couldn't help but hide a twinge of agony when something brushes his scars.
Don't be such a baby- you have a neophyte to train.
Shade straightened his posture and- acting as if he were just fine- continued walking until he happened upon their rendezvous site.
Spotting Kasparr, he woofed, "Ready for your training, then?" He flexed his muscles, shutting out the pain in his side and face.

[Sivoncé™]

Kasparr's head swiveled toward's his mentor's scorched and battered figure. His eyes widened slightly as he realized how serious Shade's injuries had been -- something he hadn't really gotten to see very well until now. Waves of guilt washed over him, something not usual for the upbeat and outgoing wolf.. He should be resting right now...not taking me out in this mess! Well...I'll try and do my best today, but I think this is going to be a difficult one...
"Yes, I'm ready. What are we working on today?" He woofed, deciding not to dwell too much on Shade's condition. He'd obviously made it here all right, and there was no point in not training when they were already both out in the territories. Besides, with the way things were going lately...
I'm going to need all the training I can get.

[.Rabid Lycan.]

Shade paused, taking a few quick breaths before replying. "...how about we work on unbalancing and recovering techniques?"
With all these invasions in such, he'll be needing that skill to take on those larger wolves he reflected, although wishing at the same time that he could just lie down and watch him practice on his own.
"First of all, you must remember the golden rule: never let your enemy pin you onto your stomach. Avoid it at all costs. There are ways to get out of it- and I'll show you a few today- but they are difficult and won't always work. Understand?"

[Sivoncé™]

Kasparr nodded seriously, intent on the subject. Uncharacitaristically serious. But he knew by Shade's tone that this was important -- well, more important than its usual importance. I wonder if it would help if all of the neophytes met outside the den after training and swapped sessions? That might speed things up and help the pack...but it also might tire us out, or we might not learn at the same speeds since there's so many of us. Well, maybe we could break up into smaller groups and then do it.....
Never get pinned on your stomach...seems golden to me. It's the most vulnerable position we could be in! They could shred you to bits in a second....
Which means this is a really vital lesson. Okay. I'll be serios Kasparr for now. As hard as that is...I'm afraid it's necessary...
Kasparr nodded. "I understand," he affirmed. He watched closely, the guilt slipping back in as he thought of Shade's injuries.
If things get bad, I'll just offer to go with Trianna and Greta for the day or something...

[.Rabid Lycan.]

Shade was mildly surprised that Kasparr responded so obediantly. He seems different right now...
Not that he was complaining. If Kasparr stayed like this for a little longer, he could possibly go easier on his wounds and burns.
"...right. Good. First we'll work on recoveries, just in case you get in an uncomfortable position like that."
He laid down on his back, shrugging off the pain that blossomed through his shoulder.
"...let's say a wolf did get me pinned on my back, with my stomach exposed. To combat the other wolf, you can rake your hind legs across his stomach above, if you can-" he rolled back on his shoulders- flinching visibly as he did so- and lifted his legs to kick out above him "- like that."
Quickly, he drew himself up to a stand, eager to put the pressure of his burns. "...you try it."

[Sivoncé™]

Kasparr watched as Shade made his demonstrations, flinching himself when Shade's injuries began to play up. But it seemed bearable for now, at least, and Shade didn't stay on it for long ; he was back up again in a flash, and it was Kasparr's turn to dismantle what could easily be an atomic bomb in battle -- something that could have you killed in a minute if you didn't act fast. Not that pack wolves aimed to kill when they fought each other....but when Blood Mist wolves were involved...
...things were more than just a little different. In any case, it was nice to know the wiring of things.
"Okay....I'll give it a try, then...." Kasparr woofed, not being able to resist the urge to let his tail wag slightly.
Ah. I admit it. I love battle training....
The neophyte laid down on his back as his mentor had done. Then, thinking he probably wouldn't comfortably lay himself down in the midst of battle, he got up again and let himself fall back instead, getting the full feel of what would happen when the wind was knocked out of his lungs by a bigger wolf. He started with the first move Shade had shown him, curling his hind legs close to his exposed stomach for protection as he lashed out at an invisibly foe. Once he'd done what he thought would be enough belly-slashes for a practice run, he attempted Shade's second move. But when he rolled on his shoulders, he was offbalanced and once again, in a completely vulnerable place, the breath knocked from him. He looked up at Shade, frowning, then decided to try it again right away. He rolled back on his shoulders and used his back legs to deliver what would've been a sharp kick before rocking back down.
Not my strength, but I guess I was all right the second time....
He looked up at Shade, a wince on his face as he thought of his blunder.

[.Rabid Lycan.]

Shade half-smiled, noticing that Kasparr was taking enjoyment in battle training. Enthusiasm is good... though I doubt he'll like it as much when he gets into an actual battle. Everything changes when it's real...
"That's good," Shade woofed, limping closer to his neophyte. "This is a hard move to do. But you need to use your leg and stomach muscles a little more to bring you up as high as you can on your shoulders. Try to get your feet near your muzzle. Then just release forward, and you'll kick your attack straight in the face."
It truly was difficult, but with the Cult and others involved, it would be a valuable skill to know.
Especially since the Cult wolves could easily knock these neophytes over he thought, smile fading at the idea.

[Sivoncé™]

Kasparr nodded vigorously, then stood up to wind himself again -- something that seemed almost fun at the moment. He managed to hold in an 'oof' as he hit the ground, growing serious as he focused on what Shade had advised him to do.
Okay....my kick last time was more towards my opponent's stomach, but I already ailed them with the scratches, so I need to them to be distracted so I can squirm out...Shade was right ;; a kick in the face is definitly much, much better. Kasparr tucked his legs in, rolling back only a little on his shoulders at first, then letting himself go slightly more. His back legs flew out, shoving his invisible enemy's face rather hard. He then managed a little squirm/crawl thing away from the "opponent" before standing. He smiled a small smile, pleased with himself that he had done at least slightly better. "More like that, right?" Kasparr asked, voice hopeful.

[.Rabid Lycan.]

Shade snapped out of his trail of thoughts and smiled at Kasparr. Nodding his head, eyes gleaming, he replied, "Yep- just like that. Very good."
Sitting down, Shade suggested, "Let's try a different type of recovery. This one should be easier- it'll come in handy when you're both standing.
"Let's say that you are facing your enemy. He lunges at you, and he's too fast to avoid. He hits you on your side- maybe on your shoulder."
He immitated an attack, leaning to one side as if he had been hit on the other.
"You can use the force driving you to one side to bring you right back up."
He followed through, continuing the lean until he rolled onto the ground and back onto his paws.
He bit his tongue as he came up, stiffening. Rolling on his shoulder wasn't exactly the best thing for him right now.
A little too quickly, Shade woofed, "Try it."

[Sivoncé™]

Kasparr watched again while Shade showed him another useful recovery move --something a little different than what they had just been doing. When it was his turn to try it, he stepped forward, then imitated being hit on the shoulder, stumbling to one side, then leaning and rolling as Shade had done. When he was back on his paws agian, he looked to his mentor for feedback.
I think my roll was a little....I don't know. I didn't lean enough before I rolled, I think. That actually kind of hurt....
Well, Shade will let me try it again, and I'll know what to do better this time.
"How did I do?"

[.Rabid Lycan.]

Shade nodded slowly, pushing away his pain.
"That was good for a first try. You need to try not to stumble at first when you're hit; that way, you can get into a deeper lean and combine your opponent's thrust into your roll much faster and more efficiently. Oh, and keep in mind that it will actually be a bit easier with someone attacking you-- that'll give you an extra momentum when your enemy hits you."
He stepped closer to Shade, so that he was directly in front of him.
"The trick is to use what you've got. You got a hit to the side? Fine, roll with that hit and use it to get right back up with less damagae. It's pretty hard, but if you practice a bit you can do it."
Shade raised a paw.
"Here, try it again-- I'll hit you lightly on the shoulder to help simulate the attack."
He made a soft swing at Kasparr's shoulder.