Grayell grunts as he gets to his feet and picks up a stick. It has been fashioned in the same manner as Zane's own. He hefts it to his shoulder and starts to walk.
You signal your moves. Your attacks are strong, swift; you have great control - but you indicate your next attack. You think too much, put too much into what you're going to do. You anticipate and react, but react to your thoughts and not what is happening. You have to be fluid... like the river. Ebb and flow, back and forth. Rush in, overwhelm everything, find a way through and then recede like a tide.
Grayell stopped when they reached the riverside and stood on the many smooth river rocks that lined the bank. He turned to face Zane.
Alright, the exercises you have performed where to condition your body in the use of a sword, to make it more natural, an extension of yourself. This is a skill that still takes many years to master, but you have come a very long way.
Also, your exercises have taught you the basic strikes of swordplay. They are the thrust, the reverse thrust, the downward strike, the upward strike, the diagonal strike and the across strike.
Grayell slowly demonstrates each as he talks and Zane can clearly see them as familiar, each move having been part of one of more of his exercises.
These are the foundation of all sword fighting. The are other moves of course, considered less necessary and often more flashy, but these are all a variant of what you know now. You can use any of these strikes in combination, the better your familiarity with your weapon of choice, the better your ability. These strikes apply to all sword types.
Now, you need to be able to enact these moves without signalling. At present, your feet, your shoulders and your elbows indicate your intent. You need to be direct, fluid and work from your guard. But to better teach you awareness, you have to learn to cope with things beyond your control.
Grayell shifts his feet in the rocks.
The rocks beneath you are loose. One moment hard, the next soft. Slipping, falling, it is difficult to move one. You have larger rocks, logs and even pools of water to contend with. Your problem is this. You're going to focus on striking me, but your footing is going to remove your comfort zone, you won't be able to simply shift your foot and strike clean. You will be compensating for your environment and your moves will be sloppy, easy to detect unless you can overcome it.
To do so, you must act intuitively. Your strikes must be sudden, organic and appropriate for your situation.
Grayell draws his wooden sword into both hands and levels it in front of him. It guard his front, his legs are apart and his eyes are focused, seeing past the tip of his sword which leans toward Zane.
Zane nods, looking slightly apprehensive, and raises his stick. He looks at Grayell, and then lunges, trying to let his body react naturally while he strikes, instead of letting his mind control it and give too much away
Zane saw Grayell's blow coming, and tries to jerk over to avoid it. As he does, he uses the momentum and swing at Grayell while his stick was extended towards him.
As he's talking, Zane strikes, mid-sentence, trying to catch Grayell off-guard. He turns it into a faint however, and instead spins, trying to catch him in a trap
Zane does his best to spin with Grayell's blow, and keep his head ahead of the blow. He uses that momentum to bring his sword around at Grayell, aiming for his midsection
Zane smiles and slashes at Grayell, but as he does so, he put his foot on the log and kicks it, using the force to pull back his strike, and then come again at the other side, trying to catch Grayell anyway possible
Grayell was fast with his feet, shifting sideways and sending rocks scattering. He turned, his sword folding by his side and then out to snap at Zane's and deflect it entirely. It recoiled in, flourished past his face and then whipped down toward his leg.