[u][b]The Circle of Magi, Oslo[/b][/u]

“I’m sick of it.” A frustrated growl rumbled through the small outdoor area designated for physical training. Tegan turned her attention from the students she’d been observing as they slowly went through their basic sword movements, her thumbs hooked loosely in the front of her belt, and set her bemused eyes onto the young man who’d interrupted with his complaint. The muscle stacked young man puffed himself up when he knew he had gained the attention of the long Guardian instructing them and his frown deepened with a huff.

“Of what, lad?” An eyebrow quirked in feint interest. The Guardian recognized the man from the newest batch of students to come to the Circle, but she could not recall his name. He was probably about the same age she had been when she’d joined the Tower, perhaps a little younger, and in the stage of life where he thought he knew everything. She glanced at the wooden practice sword he was strangling in his meaty fist; it looked like a toothpick. “Sword too big for you?” One side of her lazy smile pulled itself into a lopsided smirk. His face flushed red and the wooden weapon was thrown heavily into the packed dirt. Perhaps she shouldn’t be playing with the bull.

“Of this!” He waved his hands around to encompass their training field. Most people on it had stopped their practice at his disturbance and watched with varying degrees of interest as he threw his tantrum. “I know how to use a sword, my father’s personal guard taught me. These exercises are pointless. All we’ve been doing is swinging at air! What does a woman know about fighting? This is a joke.”

“Ah, well we’re all duly impressed by your skills, I’m sure.” She shifted her weight to stand hipshot, nodding her head towards a rack of bladed weapons that sat at the edge of the training area. “Go on then, grab a sword. Prove yourself and I will elevate your training and even get you a new teacher, if you wish it.”

The trainee didn't verbally acknowledge her, but stalked over to the weapons only to quickly scan them and heft the largest of the broadswords sitting on the rack onto his shoulder. Of course, she thought idly as they moved into a small fighting ring surrounded by a low fence. She swung her legs over the short obstacle and checked to make sure her magical amulet was still safely tucked away beneath her leather armor and was unable to pick up her voice. She wasn’t sure where Abraham –her partner and the one who carried the twin of her amulet- had gone gallivanting off to, but she was disinclined to pester him by having her spoken words picked up by the trinket and crammed into his thoughts all the time nor did she want to break the chain and lose the thing [i]again[/i].

“Ready?” Tegan asked, finally bothering to unsheathe her own blade and shake free of her slouched, relaxed posture even though she maintained a calm, confident air about her. The novice student grunted his assent and immediately charged her head on, arching his straining arms to deliver a full force swing. Bull indeed. She side stepped him and shook her head patronizingly. Slow and sloppy. He’d try to compensate for his lack of technique by overpowering her with his brute strength. That was, if he could land a blow. He may have used swords in a fight, but he most certainly did not know how to swordfight.

A few more futile swipes, a few more agile dodges, and Tegan’s opponent grew even more heated. His inability to even get her to use her blade had him fuming and her rather impassive look probably didn’t help his temper. She watched his anger grow as they walked a slow circle and saw his muscles bunch before he bellowed and charged her again, swinging the giant blade in a heedless flurry of sharpened steel. She angled away the first strike with her blade, the power of the blow reverberating soundly through her arms but bearable, and settled into a comfortable rhythm. Tegan’s style of swordplay was precise and conservative; she never used more strength or energy than was needed and her movements were fluid and exact. And though some of the combinations she used were dizzingly complex, they were not flourished. Regardless, the simple grace of it was beautiful. 

Tegan found that she could easily lure him into even the most obvious of traps and knew what he was going to do before he probably even did. But she didn’t go on the offensive, not for the first few minutes. Tegan allowed the novice to burn off his angst and energy, and flailing that massive broadsword he’d chosen around like he was it didn’t take long. When the fight finely stated to fade from his eyes Tegan struck. She baited him into swinging at her midsection. Her slim blade twisted around his own and she used his own momentum to pry it from his sweating palms. The broadsword skittered a few feet away on the hard-packed dirt. The small crowd that had gathered cheered and Tegan saw more than a couple of hands exchange coin. She merely replaced her blade into its scabbard, wiped the thin sheen of sweat off of her brow, and resumed the stance she had maintained before the fight. “You rely entirely on your strength and not at all on any sort of precision or technique. Go back to practicing your movements,” she said evenly before adding wryly, "And perhaps inform your father on his poor choice of guard." A little humiliation would be good for the kid.

She turned away and exited the ring only to see a younger Guardian trotting up to her. “Tegan,” he said as they grasped forearms in the strong greeting of fellow warriors, “I don’t know if you saw, but another group of Paladins just came into the city… maybe a company’s worth.” He paused to shake his head and spit at the ground in distaste. “Some of the others have been talking about posting extra Wardens at the gates, just to be safe. I'm not fond of our situation.”

“Me neither, Joral,” she agreed, glancing off towards the main gates to their grounds. She’d never seen so many from the Rose Order holed up in one place before and it was certainly not comforting that they were doing it right at their doorstep. The Circle was currently stretched pretty thin as well. “More watches couldn’t hurt,” she added with a sigh. It wasn’t like she got that much sleep nowadays anyway. She could smell the impending war on the wind, she just didn’t know if it would be the Paladins, her own homeland, or Malfear that would strike at them first.

As soon as she and Joral parted ways, Tegan pulled harshly on the thick chain around her neck and flipped the amulet out of its confinement. “Abe? Where are you? I don’t know if you’ve heard yet, but more Paladins came in today. I think that officially brings their numbers in the city up to uncomfortable.” If she once felt odd about looking like a crazy person holding a conversation with a necklace, she’d long gotten over it.