Training.

[socialdisaster]

Character(s): Squall and Maria.
Location: Training Center.
Rating: PG
Open/Closed/Finished: Closed
Summary: Maria's first training session with Squall.

Maria had a private message waiting for her on BBS:

Meet me in front of the Training Center at 1900 hours. No GFs. Be ready for combat.

-- SL

Squall was waiting in the hallway that led to the Training Center, leaning against the wall with his arms folded over his chest. He didn't have the Lion Heart with him, instead opting for a simple Revolver, but he had some decent magic equipped, along with Shiva and the Brothers: Aura, Curaga, Double, Thundaga, and Haste were among his arsenal for the day. The Commander also had a few Remedies and Potions, for the rare chance that something should go wrong. He didn't want Maria or himself to end up as T-Rexaur food -- that would be a terrible first tutoring session.

Locked in his own thoughts, his brow furrowed heavily. Truth be told, he was a little nervous. He had no idea what had possessed him to offer to teach Maria, but now that he had, he didn't want to do a bad job at it. Squall sighed and leaned his head back until it bumped softly against the wall. He hoped he wouldn't screw up.

Comments

[socialdisaster]

After taking on and defeating a near all-powerful sorceress, fighting against a T-Rexaur was more like child's play. He exploded with pent-up energy, blade slicing through the air and landing deep in dinosaur muscle. The T-Rexaur roared, wrenching itself free to turn and swing its heavy tail, which landed hard against Squall's side. The GFs and junctioned magic enabled him to withstand the worst of the blow, and he brought down his gunblade again, cleaving through most of the tail until it only hung by a few tendons.

Squall remained on the offensive, quickly retrieving his weapon and dancing away from rows of razor sharp teeth that gnashed at him in desperation. His feet were light and steady, bringing him back into range so he could take his gunblade and leap up, embedding the steel into the T-Rexaur's neck. It gave one final roar and began to fall, its weight actually causing the gunblade to be wrenched from Squall's hands. It landed with a booming thud, struggling to breathe as its life seeped away. He climbed on top of the creature and grabbed hold of the Revolver; not wanting the beast to lie there suffering, he drove the blade down deep into the monster's chest, piercing its heart. It gave a shuddering gasp and then finally died.

He slid back down to the ground, his gunblade dripping with blood and gore. His side was throbbing, and he was pretty sure he'd be sore in the morning, but it wouldn't even rank on his list of memorable injuries. Squall realized that Maria had finished off the grats while he was busy, and he arched a brow.

"Are you okay?"

[gunbladegrrl]

"Not unharmed, but not unreasonably harmed, sir," she said quite truthfully. Pain from this sort of wound was nothing to her, a minor annoyance at best. "It may seem arrogant to say this after only a few months of training, but I kind of feel like grats are old hat."

She spun her weapons back into place, then dug out a roll of linen bandages from a small pouch on the strap for the holster to start wrapping her forearms.

[socialdisaster]

Furrowing his brow, he watched Maria tend to her wounds. "Make sure you wash those cuts," he said, deadpan. "Grats are infested with bacteria."

So grats were too easy for her. He could sympathize. The Training Center really needed some variety, but it was too difficult to maintain sufficient population levels whenever different monsters were introduced to the habitat.

He took out a cloth from the back pocket of his pants and started wiping off his blade. He'd clean it properly once he got back to his dorm. "How much fighting experience do you have outside of the Center?"

[gunbladegrrl]

No need to worry. She will drop by the Infirmary once she's been dismissed, to get proper care. They're... very used to her there.

"Sir, I have fought many of the creatures near Balamb. Though it was more for the purpose of stocking my paramagic than actual fighting experience. Prior to Garden I trained extensively in Dollet, but no actual combat was involved."